Los Angeles Lakers: Banking On The Bench

Every team needs an identity. A calling card. Something to hang their hat on.

The Los Angeles Lakers presumably will have Kobe Bryant, but relying too heavily on a star is prelude to disaster.

This team will try to make their identity defense, and that is admirable. However, with the roster currently the way it is, the talent to make a massive impact on that end is just not there.

So what identity is likely to emerge this season? Looking at the roster, strong bench play looks like a prime candidate.

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With a potential lineup of Steve Nash, Xavier Henry, Nick Young, Julius Randle, and Ed Davis, this could be one of the best Los Angeles Lakers bench squads in recent memory. In fact, one could argue that this five would provide a stiff challenge to the group that started most games last season.

Offensively, any group led by a healthy Steve Nash should be cohesive. Add in the scoring-minded Nick Young, the post presence of Julius Randle, the slashing of Xavier Henry, and the clean up ability of Ed Davis, and the bench starts to look extremely well built. The pieces fit well on paper, and at this point in the season, that’s the best you can hope for. Being able to maintain offensive flow with the starters out should prove to be a solid advantage for the Lakers.

On defense, this squad could be decent as far as benches go. There is no real strong perimeter defense, but Jordan Clarkson could emerge as a lanky athlete that could see some time. Julius Randle is a beast on the boards and Ed Davis is a good rim protector, so there are key roles that are already likely filled for the bench unit. And, in the long run, as long as they are better offensively than their opponents, they do not need to be lights out from the bench.

Having a strong bench would also make the Los Angeles Lakers a playoff contender, because that would mean the starting lineup is doing its job as well. Plus there would be a lot of Robert Sacre dancing, so there’s that.

Bench strength will be key with veterans like Steve Nash and Kobe Bryant needing time to rest their creaky bones and tired muscles, and is a key component to overcoming adversity in that regard. From top to bottom, this Lakers roster is fairly balanced in terms of the starting lineup to the backups, setting the stage for the bench to be the key component to drive this team forward.

If Julius Randle develops as the team hopes he does, and Steve Nash stays healthy, we could be looking at one of the best benches in the league in terms of offensive production. They will need to be up there for this team to be competitive in games against the toughest opponents. Nick Young will continue to do Nick Young things, good and bad, and the addition of Ed Davis will prove to be monumental for the fortunes of this team.

Going into this season, it’s hard to decipher exactly which part of this team will identify itself as the foremost strength.

Look no further than the bench.

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