Recently humiliated by Orlando, the Lakers have been blowing hot and cold since the start of the season. So what should we think of Darvin Ham’s squad as they aim for the title in 2023-24? A big fan of the Pourpres et Ors, singer Matt Pokora indulged in a big analysis about them.
Having ambitions is good, but being able to assume them is another kettle of fish. Conference finalists last year, the Lakers obviously intended to return to the top this season but the start of the campaign is still quite difficult. Currently, the Californians are barely balanced with three victories for as many defeats. Their schedule was not easy, but we could have hoped for better.
The last match against the Magic in particular ended in a fairly humiliating defeat for LeBron James & co. and unsurprisingly, it didn’t take much for doubts to resurface among some. For his part, Matt Pokora, however, tries to keep a cool head, remembering the disastrous start to 2022-23. Present on the SIG floor recently, he looked into the case of his favorite NBA franchise:
Despite the struggles, Matt Pokora confident in the Lakers
🎙️ @MPokora sur le début de saison des Lakers ! 💯@sigstrasbourg x @LNBofficiel#BetclicELITE pic.twitter.com/vQFmYdk51Q
— SKWEEK (@skweektv) November 5, 2023
Already at 3-3, we’re off to a much better start than last season. But above all I think that the Lakers, there are already quite a few absent from the last matches, in the rotation. Guys like Prince, Hachimura, Vanderbilt, Vincent were still important guys. We have to find the rotations, we also played against teams which were the Kings, Nuggets… Orlando they knew each other better the youngsters, there were fewer boulevards, upheavals this summer than with the Lakers.
It’s like last year, I’m not too worried honestly, we’ll have to find the right rotations. There are a lot of people at the Lakers, there is also room to make trades at the deadline to strengthen the squad so no, I’m not too worried for the moment. But it’s certain that whatever happens, the Lakers will be underdogs. The Nuggets are super armed, the Celtics are scary. If Porzingis stays healthy all season, it’s going to hurt.
It’s a fact, the Lakers still have to find themselves after making so many roster changes during the offseason. It is rare for collective alchemy to develop to its full extent in such a short time and you must therefore be patient. Except that, the concept of patience is quite vague when we talk about the franchise with 17 championship titles, whether it is the managers or the supporters…
If everything is not going as planned at the Lakers at the moment, Matt Pokora does not want to sound the alarm about his favorite team yet. On the other hand, he is lucid enough to recognize that at present, the Californians are not among the big favorites for the title this year.
