Dec 2, 2013
Stephen R. Sylvanie, USA TODAY Sports
The Los Angeles Lakers have been a nice surprise this season, posting a 9-9 record throughout the first 18 games. For the always title hungry Lakers that may sound like a horrible thing, but for the expectations this Kobe less roster had going into the season, this isn’t too bad. The way the team has been playing has actually been inspiring.
This Lakers team is playing better than the super team they had last season with Dwight Howard and Steve Nash. With Dwight gone and Nash on his last leg and beat down from injuries, the team was supposed to be depending on the kind of old but still decent Pau Gasol until Kobe Bryant returned. Instead this team is playing a fast pace Mike D’Antoni type offense with the role players that they go for the low this summer. This team hasn’t been that good on defense and they don’t even have a solid rotation (well D’Antoni keeps changing the lineup that is) but they have been pretty damn fun to watch.
Before the season started, if I told you Xavier Henry would lead a team on crazy comebacks and start runs to blow games open, you would probably think I was crazy. If I said that I was probably drunk, but now I can say that with confidence. Henry has been a big part of what the Lakers have been doing this season, and has been playing some very good offense. Henry and Nick Young off the bench have been very impressive and have shown to be the perfect spark plugs off the bench.
What makes these Lakers even more dangerous is that anybody on the roster can have a big game, any given night. I’ve seen Jodie Meeks, Jordan Hill, Jordan Farmar, Steve Blake and Wesley Johnson all come in and lead the team to victories.
I’m not saying that this Laker team is built for the playoffs but through almost 20 games they have been a .500 team. Now the real question is, when Kobe Bryant comes back, what happens then?
Everick Davis Jr.
Was good though, it's me Everick Davis Jr. Born and raised in Portsmouth Virginia, I'm currently a senior at the University of North Carolina Greensboro. I watch every sport (not so much golf) but I am huge on the NBA. My favorite players right now are J.R. Smith, Russell Westbrook & Nick Young. Drinking beer and watching sports is my favorite past time and I do it year round! I used to play basketball on the regular until everyone else kept growing and I still stood at 5'6. So that's when I channeled my efforts into becoming the next Stephen A Smith or anything close to that. I currently write for "The Carolinian" newspaper in Greensboro, NC and intern for http://theurbantwist.com/ Random Fact about me, I love anime, my favorite one is One Piece! Second random fact, I got beatz! check me out http://www.reverbnation.com/ielabs
