Los Angeles Lakers will strike back next season - NBA Special Report (Part-1)
Los Angeles Lakers pursuit for a three-peat ended in a dramatic fashion when the eventual NBA Champions Dallas Mavericks swept out the purple and gold in the Western Conference semi-finals.
Despite of being highly favoured, the Lakers crashed down against the veteran Mavericks. It also marked an abysmal end to the splendid coaching career of the Hall of Famer Phil Jackson.
One of the biggest reasons for Lakers demise was the deficiency in the offensive system. It was constantly observed that the legendary Kobe Bryant was running the show on the front court alone and the team failed to put forth a
second scoring option whenever the influential shooting guard struggled to carry the momentum.
With the departure of Jackson and the end of a bust season, the fans in the city and the world of NBA started to wonder what to expect from the Lakers in the next season. The franchise hired former coach of Cleveland Cavaliers
Mike Brown in place of Phil which also triggers a concern that whether Lakers can continue their legacy.
Even though the Los Angeles Lakers lost the spark big-time in the last season however they still are a very competitive side in the league which is a big reason to believe that the franchise can turn it on in the upcoming season.
Here are some reasons why Lakers will bounce back strong with the start of the upcoming season.
Steve Blake and Matt Barnes will improve
The Los Angeles Lakers acquired the veteran point guard Steve Blake in 2010 from the Los Angeles Clippers and signed him for a four year contract worth of 16 million dollars.
The Lakers were expecting big from Blake however the 31 year old point guard struggled to mark an impression under the unfamiliar offensive system of the team that was arranged by Jackson. He averaged his career-low 4 points and
connected only 35 percent of his shots.
The newly acquired head coach Brown will bring in a new game-plan on the front court which will help Steve to at least return to his career average of 7 points and shoot a better percentage from the field.
Blake is a prolific shooter, who can change the course of the game in the crunch time as he did in the season opener for the Lakers against the Houston Rockets by landing a blow from beyond the arc to put the team on the frontline.
He will be a handy player for the team down the stretch in the next season.
On the other hand, the 31 year old guard Matt Barnes signed with Lakers last year in the same month when Blake was landed. Barnes had a decent first year with the team as he averaged 6.7 points and 4.3 rebounds in the 2010-2011
regular season. One of the big factors that hampered Matt from stamping a strong impression was the lack of minutes that he was given on the court. Barnes played with an average of 19.2 minutes per game. He has shown potential to earn more minutes and will
be a key player for the Lakers in the next season.
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