15. Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers may not have traded Russell Westbrook, but they did manage to close the offseason strong by adding Patrick Beverley and Dennis Schroder. They added insurance to the point guard position in the event that a Russ trade does materialize and upgraded the roster at the same time.
If LeBron James and Anthony Davis can remain healthy, it wouldn’t be surprising if this team became a contender in the Western Conference. Though, at this point, that’s something that’s almost impossible to say firmly.
The NBA is better when LeBron and the Lakers are relevant. The hope is that will be the case this season but there’s some proving that needs to be done. I’m bullish on the Lakers but the talent is in place. It really just depends if they can stay healthy.