Insider Reveals Lakers’ Secret Strategy to Boost LeBron James' Title Hopes

While several teams made splashy moves this offseason, the Los Angeles Lakers have largely stayed pat, notably adding rookies Dalton Knecht and Bronny James to the roster.

According to ESPN insider Dave McMenamin, the Lakers are not always keen to heavily tinker with the lineup, especially after a strong postseason run, due to an old philosophy of the team's late owner Dr. Jerry Buss.

"The patriarch of the Lakers franchise, the late Dr. Jerry Buss, always had the philosophy," said McMenamin on ESPN's "NBA Today" on Wednesday. "If he viewed the Lakers as a Western Conference Finals contender, then he would go into the subsequent season willing to push draft capital and take on salary to get them a little bit of an edge."

"There are still people within the organization that view business that same way."

LeBron James and the Lakers lost to the Denver Nuggets in the first round of last season's playoffs. They had to beat the New Orleans Pelicans in the Play-In Tournament to qualify for the postseason.

Despite the early exit, McMenamin said the Lakers brass is still optimistic about the squad's core, especially since they made it to the Western Conference Finals in 2023, so the Buss' old strategy is still in play.

"Management knows that with the right tweaking, they could get them to that level this year," McMenamin added.

The biggest tweak of the Lakers heading to the season was hiring former NBA sharpshooter JJ Redick as head coach, replacing Darvin Ham.

Aside from signing Knecht and Bronny, the Lakers' offseason moves included re-signing Max Christie and letting go of Spencer Dinwiddie. Free agent Doug McDermott is reportedly being considered by the Lakers to give LeBron an additional shooter.

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