The two teams just don’t have what it takes to win this year. However, based on popular opinion, two of the most anticipated teams to win an NBA title this year are the Los Angeles Lakers and Clippers. According to the GM Survey, most have voted for the Clippers to win a 2020 NBA title with the Milwaukee Bucks following 2nd and the Lakers following 3rd. Contrary to popular opinion, here are some reasons why I don’t think the LA teams have what it takes to take the trophy this year.
Chemistry
Chemistry by definition is a study of matter and its composition, properties, and reactivity. To translate this into sports-terms, chemistry is the defining feature in determining whether a team and its players play well together. Just because a team is composed of many superstars, does not mean the team is made of or guaranteed success. Take the 2012–2013 Lakers team. That roster for the year was composed of: Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash, and Dwight Howard. Nash and Bryant were hall of fame caliber-type players and Dwight Howard was arguably still in his prime. Without looking at the rest of the roster, this team seemed to almost unfair. On paper, Kobe, Nash, and Dwight looked like an unstoppable team. However, the Lakers finished 7th in the Western Conference that year. To make matters worse, the Lakers were swept (lost 4 in a row) by the San Antonio Spurs and finished their playoff run without making it past the first round. Now some may blame injuries and the ageing Kobe, but often times there are other factors as well. The team had different viewpoints on how they would improve. “Howard thought that team chemistry needed to improve. Bryant believed it was okay if the locker room was chippy. D’Antoni said that chemistry-building was overrated if the team played with maximum effort.” (Knowpia).
If you guys still aren’t convinced about chemistry playing an important role in determining a team’s success, take a look at the 2009–2010 Miami Heat Team (LeBron James, Chris Bosh, Dwayne Wade). The team did not win a championship the first year. It took them a whole year of playing together to win championships the following 2 years. Now take a closer look at the top 3 teams voted to win the 2020 NBA Championship (Clippers, Lakers, Bucks). The Buck’s roster remains relatively unchanged, meaning the team’s chemistry is more or less unchanged. The Laker’s roster, however, has seen many changes since the last season. The team has traded most of its young core for the superstar Anthony Davis and added a few pieces here and there. Thus, the team is banking on winning the championship with the LeBron and Davis duo. If you take a look at the Clipper’s roster, most of their team is intact, but they added 2 new superstars, Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. Now one might argue that chemistry would not be a big problem on the Clippers, but Paul George has yet to recover from his injury and when he does come back, changes will need to be made to adjust to the team’s current playing style.
The Season Barely Started
The NBA season can be a bumpy road and with only a few games played so far, success and failures of each team still cannot be determined. Without a sufficient amount of regular season games to judge the teams’ performances, the most we can do is speculate based on previous seasons. Since the Lakers and Clippers roster looked different prior to this season, there are no accurate data to examine here. However, teams like the Milwaukee Bucks and the Philadelphia 76ers have kept most if not all the core team intact, thus examining their previous team performance through the regular season and post season can be informational and beneficial in determining the teams’ future success. Furthermore, the NBA season is prone to many fluctuations. Teams may go on winning sprees to only go on a losing streak a few games later. Unlike many other companies, their business cycles may be relatively unpredictable. The same cannot be said about the NBA. For example, the winner of a game depends on how well a specific player is doing that night or it can depend on literally the last shot of a closing game.
Injuries
As mentioned before, injuries played a role in determining the date of the 2012–2013 Lakers. Likewise, in last year’s NBA Finals, injuries played an important role in determining which team won. The Golden State Warriors were the favorites to win last year, but with the injuries of Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson during their playoff run, they were looking a lot vulnerable by the time they played the Toronto Raptors. With a healthy Kawhi Leonard and Kyle Lowry, the Raptors were able to take advantage of the weakened warriors and beat them 4–2. Needless to say, some injuries are more serious and impactful than others. Durant and Thompson’s injuries last year were so bad that they were unable to continue playing for the majority of the playoff run. Other injuries which do not require any major surgeries will allow the player to recover much quicker. If you need further proof of how injuries can impact a playoff run, the sportster has a running list of major injuries that affected a team’s chances to win.
Anything Can Happen
In the NBA, whether it is chemistry or injuries, everything can change in one night. A player who no one may have known or paid attention to may drop 20+ points in one night. On the flip side, All-Star and MVP caliber players like Stephen Curry or LeBron James may come cold in a game and only score 10–15 points. In other instances, trades and draft picks among teams can elevate one team, but weaken another. From the picture above, it shows some of the more well-known players and the scenarios that potentially could have played out. Most know of the legendary performance Kobe had in LA, but there almost existed a chance for him to play on the Bulls (Basketballforever, 2019). Just from that one decision alone, it made the Lakers a 5 time champion during the Kobe era. As stated before, the NBA is anything but a cyclical business. Since the season had just begun, there are still 81 games left to really decide which teams are making the right moves toward a championship run.
Sources:
https://www.knowpia.com/knowpedia/2012%E2%80%9313%20Los%20Angeles%20Lakers%20season
https://basketballforever.com/2019/03/19/the-blockbuster-nba-trades-that-almost-happened
