Los Angeles Lakers: Ranking the most important players on the roster

5. Carmelo Anthony

I debated placing Carmelo Anthony higher on this list, but I simply couldn’t do it. I believe Melo will play an important role for the Lakers but it just won’t be any more important than any of the other four players ahead of him and that’s OK.

Melo will be one of the first players off the bench, if he doesn’t start, and will anchor the second unit. He isn’t the electric scorer that he was earlier in his career but he will still have his moments in spurts. And that’s when he’ll truly show his worth to the Lakers.

Melo is no longer a player that can win a series for a team, nor can he turn an entire series around. But I still believe that he could win a quarter or even play a flawless five-minute stretch that can help turn a game around in Los Angeles’ favor.