Los Angeles Lakers: Predicting statistical leaders in each major category

The Los Angeles Lakers had a rapid fall from grace last season, going from being the champions for the 2019 NBA bubble to getting into the playoffs via the play-in tournament last season. They were knocked out in the first round to the eventual Western Conference champions, the Phoenix Suns.

Their upgrades from last season did not pan out the way they wanted. Dennis Schroder is a very good shoot-first point guard in an offense that needed a pass-first mentality. Montrezl Harrell and Marc Gasol did not produce the required interior presence that Dwight Howard and JaVale McGee provided the season before.

LeBron James is starting to suffer a few more injuries every year and Anthony Davis missed half the season through injury. However, the Lakers have restocked with veteran talent and it will be interesting to see how this impacts the statistical leaders this season.

Los Angeles Lakers statistical leaders – Scoring: LeBron James
Predicted Average: 27.0

Despite being closer to 40 than 30, James still has a massive presence in the game. As stated earlier, he is getting injured with greater regularity but part of that is the fact he has been carrying this Lakers team since he arrived. That has to put pressure on the veteran’s body.

Now that the Lakers traded away most of their younger brigade to pick up Russell Westbrook, there is less focus on development. This means that the Lakers are going to be focused on winning the championship again, especially since they picked up so many veterans.

James will the main driving force behind this again and will just edge out Westbrook as the leading scorer. With defenses collapsing on Westbrook, James will find himself a little more open hence the slight uptick in his scoring average from last season.