Since winning their last NBA title back in 2020, the Los Angeles Lakers have just been somewhat mediocre as compared to the rest of the teams in the West. Getting knocked out of the playoffs at the hands of the Denver Nuggets once again was a tough pill to swallow for LA fans. But Anthony Davis believes if these two players had remained healthy, the outcome of the series would’ve been much different.
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A part of the Team USA roster for the Paris Olympics, Anthony Davis was interviewed during the squad’s first practice session. While talking to one of the reporters, AD revealed two names from the Lakers roster who could’ve helped the team, had it not been for injuries.
“Two of our elite players were hurt. Vando (Jarred Vanderbilt) who is really good for us on the defensive end and obviously offensive rebounding and slashing, screen setting. Gabe( Vincent) who was really out for the entire year, if you look at it. A guy who is another point guard for us and can shoot the basketball, play defensively.”
FULL MEDIA AVAILABILITY: Anthony Davis talks about being on Team USA, the Lakers’ moves (and non-moves) this offseason, playing for new head coach JJ Redick and Kawhi Leonard being the funniest player on Team USA. pic.twitter.com/T4uTKEEpdk
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Anthony Davis was initially asked about the Lakers not making any moves in the offseason. While LA did not make a big splash in the free agency this summer, AD did express his optimism in the team’s front office signing JJ Redick as the new head coach.
He went on to mention Jarred Vanderbilt and Gabe Vincent as the two players who the Lakers did not have for an entire season. Vanderbilt played a total of 29 games, starting 6 of them before his season came to an end.
Gabe Vincent only played a total of 11 games in a Lakers uniform before an injury shut down his season completely. So, even though the Lakers did not add new pieces, Davis did mention these two players as pieces that the team wasn’t able to utilize to their full potential.
“So, we don’t know what we could’ve been if we had those guys, especially in the playoffs. Especially Vando because he’s a big part of what we do defensively.”
Davis also emphasized the fact that had these two players been healthy, the outcome of their postseason would’ve been much different. Had Jarred Vanderbilt and Gabe Vincent remained healthy, the Lakers could’ve had a much better record and probably would’ve faced some other team than the Nuggets.
The Laker also went on to add, “Last year is last year. We can’t say, ‘Oh, this is the same team.’ It could be a different result.” His words did hold some value as the team never found out what could’ve been had these two players remained healthy.
But now that all the key rotational players are off the Lakers’ injury report, let’s see what this LA squad can pull off in the upcoming 2024-25 NBA season.
