All the good vibes brought forth by the Los Angeles Lakers‘ incredible start to the 2024-25 season have to be gone by now especially after their demoralizing 109-80 defeat to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday night. Facing their fifth game in seven nights, the Lakers came out flat — with LeBron James and Anthony Davis epitomizing the very definition of tired legs as they combined for just 22 points on a ghastly 8-30 shooting from the field.
This latest loss knocks the Lakers down to 12-9 on the season; they have gone just .500 (9-9) since winning their first three games of the season, and even JJ Redick seems to be running out of solutions to the problems that keep on ailing the Purple and Gold. All Davis could do was react viscerally to the Lakers’ poor performances as of late.
“Sometimes we look like a team that can compete with anyone, and sometimes, we’re like a team that is terrible and not going to do anything this season. We just have to figure out what team we want to be for the rest of the season,” Davis said, via ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. “We had games where we were phenomenal and we had games where we were disgusting — like tonight.”
Indeed, the Lakers have been very hit or miss this season, more often missing as of recent games. They have been laughed out of the building in games against the Phoenix Suns and, most recently, the Timberwolves, while a late-game mistake doomed them against the Oklahoma City Thunder. It seems as though the vibes around the team have taken a turn for the worse ever since Davis’ missed free throws cost them late against the Orlando Magic.
The Lakers’ only recourse to save their season might be to explore the trade market
Related Los Angeles Lakers NewsArticle continues below
With a quarter of the season having already passed, there is greater and greater pressure for the Lakers to figure it out. A trade to shore up the team’s weaknesses, particularly on defense, could be in the cards sooner or later.
The Lakers front office has been very patient when it comes to addressing their roster needs even after coming up short against the Denver Nuggets in the playoffs on consecutive years. But with LeBron James looking more and more his age with each passing day, it might be time for them to pull the trigger on a trade or two to save their season.
The Lakers have reportedly been looking at the likes of Jonas Valanciunas, Kyle Kuzma, Walker Kessler, and Zach LaVine, just to name a few, in the name of improving their roster. But they might need to swing for a bigger needle-mover instead.