The Los Angeles Lakers were not the lone NBA team to go winless this preseason, but because they are the Lakers and so much is expected from stars LeBron James, Anthony Davis and newcomer Russell Westbrook, everyone wants to see what happens.
Everyone wants to panic and assume the worst, especially in the fantasy basketball world. In reality, the Lakers figure to be terrific with their experienced team led by proven superstars and myriad other relevant parts, though they may go through the proverbial motions until the games really matter in April.
Fair or unfair?
Well, anyone worried about the Lakers will get an initial look this week with Tuesday's opener against Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors.
Then it is the defending Western Conference champions Phoenix Suns on Friday night on ESPN. That should be fun! Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies close the weekend on the Lakers' home turf. Three intriguing games at home (and 12 of the first 15 there), and nobody cares what the Lakers did this preseason ... unless they struggle as they did this preseason.
Integrating triple-double machine Westbrook into the offense is the big key and something that could really affect early in-season fantasy drafts. For now, we always assume Westbrook will be great. After all, he averaged a triple-double in four of the past five seasons, running offenses for three vastly different franchises.
Now he is with another one but not really running things. This preseason, Westbrook, with ample playing time (25 MPG), committed more turnovers than he had assists, and shot 35% from the field. Here come the questions: Can he play as effectively with James? Will the rebounds and assists be there?
A third-round choice in ESPN average live drafts, these early days of the season may not prove whether Westbrook deserves better or worse than that, but it has to be interesting to watch.
Westbrook may struggle to accrue double-digit assists if his usage craters because James always has the ball. Davis and reserve center Dwight Howard are notable volume rebounders, too. Westbrook must defend. He looked rather disinterested in that prospect in preseason games, but then again, the Lakers permitted a league-high 118 PPG in six preseason losses. Does it mean anything? You know the old saying: It means nothing ... until it does.
It seems worth noting that the one recent season Westbrook failed to average his annual triple-double was with the 2019-20 Houston Rockets. He had a rough statistical preseason then as well, getting used to playing alongside usage-heavy James Harden and trying to steal rebounds from traditional center Clint Capela and Robert Covington. Westbrook averaged 27.2 PPG, but "only" 7.9 RPG and 7.0 APG. Still awesome, but not a triple-double. Perhaps he simply cannot earn third-round fantasy love with the Lakers playing with two other Hall of Famers. I am not there yet, of course, but I remain curious.
James, Davis and Westbrook are early picks in any draft, and then no other Lakers are rostered in more than 30% of leagues. The No. 4 fellow is Carmelo Anthony, and he probably should be waiver wire fodder. Anthony is not a great fantasy option these days.
Howard is relevant in fantasy with his rebounds, blocks and field goal shooting. Kendrick Nunn should hit myriad 3-pointers.
Young Talen Horton-Tucker is interesting because most everyone else is old, and he defends. Perhaps he sees big minutes. Anyway, whatever you think of the Lakers' preseason, you will forget all about it this week. Probably.
Others to watch this week
Nobody seems too concerned about Detroit Pistons rookie Cade Cunningham, the first pick in the NBA draft. He should be terrific and we all cannot wait to watch. However, I see plenty of mixed opinions in the fantasy world on Rockets teenager Jalen Green, the No. 2 pick. He should score, perhaps quite a bit more than Cunningham will, but what else will he do? Will he board or pass enough? Can he hit shots at a reasonable percentage that will not hurt us? The Rockets get to face a few, um, questionable defenses in the Minnesota Timberwolves and Oklahoma City Thunder this week, so pile on the points.
I try to watch every Philadelphia 76ers game -- by choice, not force -- and I have no idea whether Ben Simmons is going to play this week or not. Perhaps by the time you read this, we all know. What a disappointing situation. Fantasy managers should hardly assume Simmons plays, but be on the lookout for who runs the point in his stead. It figures to be sophomore Tyrese Maxey, especially with Shake Milton out with a sprained ankle. My advice is add Maxey to your teams now, before the team plays. The 76ers lack actual, willing-to-play point guards and it may affect Joel Embiid and Tobias Harris. Or not.
The first ESPN game of the regular season comes Wednesday at Madison Square Garden with the Boston Celtics visiting the New York Knicks. Again, since the preseason tells us so little, the early weeks can be about seeing how players fit in with their new teams. We all enjoy what Kemba Walker used to do on the court, and I think he should see enough usage to cut into the Julius Randle assists, but I really want to see him run on his balky knee. You just cannot learn about Walker's health and fitness from a box score, especially a preseason one. Then I want to see if Randle still piles on the assists.
Positive Twitter comments -- only positive, of course -- continue to remind me that my love for Nikola Vucevic is off base because the Chicago Bulls boast a loaded starting lineup, and he will clearly score and board less than a season ago. I suppose that could happen, but I do not see it, which is why I rank Vucevic in Round 1. The Bulls open at Detroit and then host the Zion-less Pelicans, and we shall see how newcomers Lonzo Ball and DeMar DeRozan are integrated. I wrote last week how DeRozan (and James, among others) are being selected a bit too optimistically in ADP, but it hardly means we let them fall too far in drafts.