The Lakers are overrated heading into next season

How good will the Lakers be next season? Depends who you ask. In an appearance on “The Bill Simmons Podcast,” Charles Barkley said the Lakers are “probably better” than the 2024 Dallas Mavericks, whom Luka Doncic carried to the NBA Finals.On the other end of the spectrum lies Norman Powell, an 11-season NBA veteran who was named an All-Star for the first time in his career last February while playing for the Miami Heat.When Powell was asked who’s the most overrated team in the league during a conversation with streamer N3on, he named the Lakers. That’s the fun of this. When it comes to the Lakers, no one knows what their ceiling will be. LeBron James left in free agency after spending eight seasons with the team, including carrying them to their first championship in eight years in 2020. They revamped their roster, adding 10 new players. They went all in on Walker Kessler, hoping he’ll transform into a star. So, who’s more right about the purple and gold: Barkley or Powell?Sorry, Chuck, while it’s great that you’re a Laker fan now that LeBron has left, Powell is right here.

The Lakers won’t be able to compete with the most elite teams in the West next season.The West is just too deep.

Even if the Lakers had no holes, they’d be fighting an uphill battle against the Thunder and Spurs, each of whom have a seemingly endless cadre of young legs and talent.But as things stand, the Lakers are shaky in several key areas, most notably with their porous perimeter defense. They need time to build chemistry.

It remains to be seen whether Kessler and Austin Reaves are going to live up to their lofty contracts.The Lakers might be good.

But it’s hard to imagine they’ll be great next season.They’re still a few tweaks away from that.

They need reinforcements.They need time to jell.

There’s no margin for error in the West.We saw how the Lakers performed against the 2025 champion Thunder last season, you know, when they lost their fou...