Lakers will be championship-level team this year: JJ Redick bleeds optimism in first presser

When it comes to the Lakers, only one thing matters. Are they championship contenders?That’s what happens when you’re a 17-time championship organization.That’s what happens when guys named Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson and Kobe Bryant have worn your jersey. It’s title or bust.

It’s Larry O’Brien or 911. So, when Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka learned that LeBron James was leaving after eight seasons in free agency, he had three goals. He wanted to re-sign Austin Reaves.He wanted a franchise center.

And he wanted to fill out the roster with young guys who could dribble, pass and shoot.And? “We felt like we accomplished all those things,” Rob Pelinka said Thursday in his first availability since last season ended. That begs one question. So, does he believe they’re real championship contenders?Then came some humming and hawing.

A bit of honesty, A tacit acknowledgement that as of now, the Lakers are still nipping at the heels of the West’s juggernauts, ie, the Spurs and Thunder. “As [Lakers coach] JJ [Redick] pointed out, there’s no off-season where you can check every single box you’re hoping to check,” Pelinka said.“But we felt like the major ones we did, and the work continues.

But we feel like we’re on the path of being a really competitive championship-level team.”Being on the path is far from the front door. But that’s when things got interesting. Redick had a different take.He spoke into microphone, unprompted. “I’m confident we’re going to develop as a team into a championship-level team this year,” Redick said.In that moment, it seemed a bit far-fetched.

It was the type of thing a coach has to say.You know, lip service, if you will. But then again, we’ve seen Pelinka’s almost radical belief in the Lakers before, laughed it off and then realized we chuckled too soon. Remember when the Lakers lost their two leading scorers in Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves to injuries against the Thu...