2021 NBA Playoffs: Contender or pretender with all 16 teams

2021 NBA Playoffs: Contender or Pretender – Los Angeles Lakers

LeBron James and his teams should always be considered a contender until he officially retires or a funeral is held. Even as he ages into his late 30s he is one of the league’s best players, a force on both ends with nearly two decades of NBA experience to draw on.

The problem with slapping “contender” on this team is not simply because they enter the bracket as the seventh seed. They are capable of winning any series in the West no matter whether they have home-court advantage, although that would certainly help. The problems for the defending champions are twofold.

First, their two stars don’t appear completely healthy. LeBron James has bursts of his usual physical dominance, but other times the explosion isn’t there and he settles for passing or taking the outside shot. Anthony Davis is playing heavy minute totals but is shooting about as poorly as it gets for the big man over his last few games. Will they get healthy in time to avoid a playoff loss?

The second problem compounds the first. Nearly every offseason move this team made has turned out to be a downgrade. They completely overhauled a center rotation that wasn’t broken, and the combination of Andre Drummond, Marc Gasol and Montrezl Harrell all have glaring weaknesses that are being exploited down the stretch and into the postseason. Dennis Schroder is struggling and being replaced by Alex Caruso. Markieff Morris isn’t even in the rotation.

If the Lakers get healthy, they can beat anyone in the league. They have two top-10 players, both optimal postseason players, and won the title a year ago. This team is a true contender. Yet the health factor is scary, and they won’t have the margin they had last year.

Verdict: Contender