2. Los Angeles Lakers
Marquee summer move: Trading for Anthony Davis
While it might be difficult to simply place the Los Angeles Lakers as the second-ranked team in the NBA heading into the 2019-20 season, I had a hard time placing many teams above the Lakers who boast a top two of LeBron James and Anthony Davis – two of the NBA’s five best players.
Even though the Lakers pretty much had to gut their team in order to acquire AD, I’ve always believed that you do what you need to do to get the star and then figure out the rest of your rotation later. That’s exactly what the Lakers did, and I believe they have just enough talent to figure it out and become a true contender in the West.
The injury to Kyle Kuzma needs to be kept a close eye on, as he’s expected to have a huge hand in this team’s success this season. If they’re going to compete for a championship, they’re going to need a healthy Kuzma.