Lakers News: LA Role Player Believes Roster As-Is Can Win Title in 2025

Does he really, though?

Jan 23, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Jalen Hood-Schifino (0) and guard Austin Reaves (15) and forward Rui Hachimura (28) and guard Max Christie (10) forward Anthony Davis (3) and forward LeBron James (23) look on from the bench in the second half against the Los Angeles Clippers at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Austin Reaves is, perhaps somewhat astoundingly, quite confident in the ability of his franchise — as currently comprised — to win what would be a record-tying 17th NBA title in the 2025 playoffs.

Outside of the addition of rookies Dalton Knecht and Bronny James through the 2024 NBA Draft, and the subtraction of forward Taurean Prince and point guard Spencer Dinwiddie via free agency, the team's front office has made no moves. Last season's vintage went just 47-35, good for the Western Conference's No. 8 seed by record, before beating the 49-33 New Orleans Pelicans in its play-in tournament meeting to nab the seventh seed. The Lakers got subsequently shellacked in the playoffs by the then-reigning champion Denver Nuggets. Granted, L.A. was without injured forward Jarred Vanderbilt in the postseason, while reserve point guard Gabe Vincent was available but struggling to play as he recuperated from a left knee effusion injury. Would their additions really be enough to have swung that Denver series?

Reaves, for one, thinks so. During a press conference to promote online gaming site Arena Plus in Manila, the 6-foot-5 wing expressed optimism about the club's upside as currently comprised, according to Rappler Sports.

“I like where we’re at,” Reaves said. “I think that we have what we need to go compete for a championship. You look back at the Denver series last year, I forget the statistic, but I think we led for like 140 minutes to their like 38 minutes or something, and we get beat 4-1. Which you can’t really wrap your mind around. But it was just a couple sequences down the stretch that we didn’t execute and they executed. If we do, we’d beat them in that series and we’d go on and have an opportunity to play Minnesota. So I like where we’re at."

Reaves also seemed excited about new head coach JJ Redick, who will be his third head coach in his four seasons with the team.

“And then obviously, getting JJ, as I was talking about, someone that’s a fierce competitor that we’ve seen in Vegas for Summer League. He came up to us and said I’ve been staring at a whiteboard for three hours trying to figure out how we’re gonna do this stuff. So you can just tell the intensity that he has and the time that he’s gonna put in.”

Read More: Coach K Believes JJ Redick Will Thrive as Lakers Head Coach

Will Redick, a win-now, floor-spacing rookie like Knecht, and the advent of a healthier Vanderbilt and Vincent truly be enough to get the Lakers back among the Western Conference's elite next season? The Nuggets may have fallen a bit in losing starting shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to free agency last season, but they appear poised to remain one of the toughest outs in the conference. The Dallas Mavericks (who made it to the Finals last year), Minnesota Timberwolves and Oklahoma City Thunder are all younger, more athletic, more prolific connecting from long range, and bigger than Los Angeles.

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