NBA Rumors: 4 untouchable Lakers not named LeBron James
In the span of 12 months, the Los Angeles Lakers have transformed their personnel and created a great roster. Unlike the roster they had to start the 2023 season, this group actually makes sense around LeBron James and Anthony Davis. They have shooting, scoring, playmaking, defense, and finishers from top to bottom.
After filling out the roster it is easy to say that the Lakers expect to be championship contenders this year. Everything depends on whether or not LeBron James and Anthony Davis are able to stay healthy.
With that being said, even the best teams in the NBA are always looking for ways to get better to increase their odds of winning a championship. The Lakers are no different. They will look for potential trade partners to get better so they can win another ring.
Every team has players that are untouchable and touchable. It is more than obvious for the Lakers that LeBron James is the only player on the roster that is 100 percent untouchable. Here are four more players that the Lakers might consider to be untouchable.
4 untouchable Lakers besides LeBron James: 4. Jarred Vanderbilt
Jarred Vanderbilt is a name many of you probably didn't expect to see on here but, he is one of the most important players on the Lakers roster. He was a part of the Russell Westbrook three-team trade last season and played 26 games for the Lakers.
What made Vanderbilt so valuable to the Lakers was that in those 26 games, he was the Lakers' second-best defender behind only defensive monster Davis. With Vanderbilt bringing a new defensive energy to the Lakers, they were the best defensive team in basketball for those last 26 games.
Even though Vanderbilt is a great defensive energizer, his energy also contributes to the offensive side of the ball. He is always running in transition for easy layups, the turnovers he causes through his defense lead to easy transition points and his hustle on the boards can lead to second-chance points.
Outside of his great energy, Vanderbilt is a liability at times because he can't shoot that well but he is still a very important piece to this Lakers team. He played a huge part in them making the Western Conference Finals and the Lakers would be fools to trade him.