That’s the fairy tale of the Lakers. It bears a striking resemblance to the one that general manager Mitch Kucphak was peddling on Thursday to reporters, when asked if the roster could compete for a playoff spot.
With an improved roster featuring Sixth Man of the Year Lou Williams and center Roy Hibbert along with Julius Randle, D'Angelo Russell and Kobe Bryant, the Lakers GM believes his franchise is ready to return to the playoffs.
“It’s a little early, but I would say yes," Kupchak said, via Baxter Holmes of ESPN.
It they were in the East, the Lakers could afford to be extremely optimistic.
The problem for the Lakers is that they would have to be better than the following Western Conference playoff teams: the Golden State Warriors, San Antonio Spurs, New Orleans Pelicans, Memphis Grizzlies, Los Angeles Clippers, Houston Rockets, Dallas Mavericks and the Portland Trail Blazers.
They would also also have to put out a better product than the Oklahoma City Thunder, Utah Jazz, Phoenix Suns and Sacramento Kings as well.
By Glenn Erby
