Lakers projected lineup and rotations heading into 2023-24 season

Los Angeles Lakers starting power forward: Jarred Vanderbilt

The power forward spot the Lakers has a bit of depth at that position with players that are versatile enough to play the 4, but their starting power forward will be Jarred Vanderbilt.

Last season in his 26 games for the Lakers, Vanderbilt only averaged 24 minutes per game. But in those minutes, he gave the Lakers 7.2 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.2 steals per contest.

When the Lakers received Vanderbilt from the Timberwolves, the defense immediately took off and became the best defensive team in basketball for the team’s last 26 games. Vanderbilt had some impact on the Lakers’ defensive effort and that’s a big reason why he will be in the starting lineup for LA this season.

Primary backup power forward: Rui Hachimura

The Lakers have a couple of options at their backup spot as Taurean Prince could play power forward from time to time, but the main backup will be Rui Hachimura. In his 33 regular season games for the Lakers in the 2022-23 season, he averaged 9.6 points and 4.7 rebounds on 49/30/72 splits.

Hachimura really showed out in the playoffs as he averaged 12.2 points and 3.6 rebounds. What was most impressive, though, was his efficiency, shooting 56 percent from the field, 49 percent from 3-point range, and 88 percent from the free throw line. Hachimura isn’t going to be this efficient for an entire season but, if he’s able to maintain a similar play for next season, the Lakers will have one of the best benches and sixth man in the league.

Other players who could receive minutes at power forward: Taurean Prince, Cole Swider

The Lakers do have one more option at their forward spot, which is Cole Swider, who played in seven games last season but also played really well in the Summer League this offseason. Swider is going to have to play himself into a role, so don’t expect to see him much on the court to start the season.