NBA Offseason: SCIC Roundtable – Part 2
May 30, 2014; Miami, FL, USA; Indiana Pacers center Roy Hibbert (55) reacts from the bench during the second half in game six of the Eastern Conference Finals of the 2014 NBA Playoffs against the Miami Heat at American Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
What team did not solve their weaknesses over the summer?
Michael Saenz: The Lakers have fallen flat on their faces two summers in a row. How many times have we said that before?
Last season, LA missed out on re-signing Dwight Howard. This year, they lost out on LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony. They’re stuck with Kobe Bryant, his contract, his injuries, Jeremy Lin and no superstar (and no, Kobe isn’t a superstar). Los Angeles alone isn’t enough to attract other superstars anymore. We’re seeing a changing of the guard. The Lakers’ biggest weakness is that they don’t have a superstar anymore, no matter how much in denial they are. They needed one, they couldn’t get one. For the second-straight offseason.
John Armstrong: This hurts me but my boys out in SacTown. I was excited when they got Darren Collison ….. because I thought he was coming off the bench. Then they let go of Isaiah Thomas. Um???????? By the way, where’s the D? Yeah, I’m still looking for it too. And how about those Lakers?
And since I just had to be that guy: Cleveland didn’t technically solve a weakness. But having LeBron and soon to be Kevin Love sure doesn’t hurt. But they do need interior defense and rim protection.
Morten Jensen: I was going to say the Lakers, and I’d be right, but seeing as we have a whole segment about them one arrow key away, I’ll cross the country and say New York. They still lack defense, they still lack proper rebounders, they still lack a second star, they still lack proper veteran leadership from someone who’s better than Jose Calderon, and while Phil Jackson did shake things up a bit, none of his moves made me sit back and go “Wow, way to go, Knicks”.
George Middleton: The Los Angeles Lakers allowed the second most points in the NBA (109.2 PPG). The Lakers didn’t add anyone that necessarily excels on the defensive end. The Lakers will probably be a poor defensive team once again, the only hope they have is Byron Scott’s coaching philosophy.
Bryce Olin: OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER! No doubt about it. The Thunder desperately needed another guard, and they didn’t get him. In the playoffs, Derek Fisher averaged 15.7 minutes per game because they had no other options. The Thunder did go get Anthony Morrow, but come on, Morrow isn’t helping that much.
David Ramil: It seems unfair to make an example of them but the Indiana Pacers is my choice. Even before Paul George’s ugly injury likely knocked this team out of contention, they failed to retain their best player (Stephenson). Their biggest weaknesses, Roy Hibbert and George Hill, are still with the team and the lack of scoring that weighed this team down last season will only get worse. It seems like this version of the Pacers has had their window to success closed and their summer acquisitions (C.J. Miles and Rodney Stuckey) aren’t enough to keep it open.
Brandon Osborne: The Indiana Pacers. Before the injury to Paul George, the Pacers were going to have problems on offense after losing Lance Stephenson. Stephenson was one of their best creators on offense even if he went a little overboard at times. Now with the loss of George for presumably the entire 2014-2015 season, the Pacers are in real trouble. It wouldn’t be surprising if they are in the lottery in next year’s draft.