Former 2023 Laker Reveals How Team Felt About Being Put Together At Trade Deadline

LA remade its roster with some key moves late into the season.

Before the NBA trade deadline last season, your Los Angeles Lakers looked like they were on the verge of missing the postseason for the second straight salary cap-straining season. But, with just a few moves, they went from being on the outside looking in, to perennial title contender. LA offloaded three past-their-prime small guards (and one competent back-up center) to add players elsewhere on their roster that made more sense.

Due to injuries, they never really got to see the final form until playoff time, but once they clicked, it was beautiful basketball. It wasn’t always easy, but the Lakers pushed through to find themselves in the Western Conference Finals.

During an interview with Ky Carlin of Sixers Wire, former Lakers center Mo Bamba (now with -- you guessed it -- the Philadelphia 76ers) opened up about his time in LA, and how the team came together while he was there.

“Absolutely,” Bamba told Sixers Wire, indicating that he’s excited to enter a season with a team that has high expectations. “I got a small taste of winning in the playoffs was like in L.A., but coming here and like having a training camp with it. When we were in L.A., all we would talk about is, ‘Yo, if we had a training camp together? This thing would have been awesome.’ But having a training camp with arguably a better team is exciting and fun to kind of indulge in.”

Per Ky Carlin of Sixers Wire

Once the trade deadline moves happened, the team clicked together and went on a run. They gelled rather quickly, and it helped them get far in the postseason.

It was impressive, to say the least, but showed that with the right pieces around LeBron James and Anthony Davis, LA can still win a title. Now entering this season, the Lakers look like a title-contending team and they should be one of the better squads across the league.

Bamba won’t get a chance to help LA win this season but having him on the team last year was nice. It’s unfortunate that he never really got to show what he could do for them due to injury, but at least he can always say that he was a Laker.

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