Lakers Eye Roster with Playoff Balls, Not Necessarily with Lonzo Ball

Back in the day, the Showtime was the pinnacle of NBA entertainment.

What with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Jamaal Wilkes, and their cohorts, it's no wonder Jack Nicholson and other Hollywood A-listers chose the Lakes as their divertissement of choice.

But as the Staples Center stage lights gradually darkened, even the silver screen's original Joker had seen enough.

 

Well, to paraphrase another of his character's famous lines, wait'll they get a load of the Lakers now.

They're the ones dancing with the devil.

Some would say one of Beelzebub's top agents has been in residence for a year already, as in whatever possessed Magic Johnson to believe LaVar and draft Lonzo?

 

Right now, who doesn't? At least, those who aren't wearing rose-colored glasses.

Initally, the thinking went that LeBron James would be satisfied settling in with the Lakes for a season, laying the groundwork for a serious title challenge in 2019-2020.

In other words, he'd be OK with waiting for Kawhi Leonard to join of his own volition.

Maybe not. After all, dude's not getting any younger. It's clear he's intent on extending his prime.

 

It seems clear now the Lakes are assembling a veteran supporting cast to LeBron's liking, with their younger talent being brought along when convenient.

They're either doing that to move up their title-chasing timeline or fight the Ball family's insanity with their own.

 

LaVar Ball has made no secret of his dream to have all three sons playing for the Lakers. That's a fairly rare feat. In fact, only a couple incidents come to mind:

• The Alou brothers -- Felipé, Matty, and Jésus -- all playing in the same outfield a couple of times for the San Francisco Giants, and
• The Staal brothers -- Jared, Eric, and Jordan -- all playing on the same line for the Carolina Hurricanes.

Since middle kid LiAngelo couldn't even attract G-League interest, maybe Pops should lower the bar and get them all in the Big 3 instead. Or a real garbage league.

 

Defense still seems to be an issue at that level, too.

As to Lonzo, the Lakes want him to be trade bait in order to attract another veteran or even assemble a dynamite package for San Antonio in exchange for Leonard.

The thought of LaVar being that close to Gregg Popovich, though, just has too much delicious schadenfreude to ever happen.

 

Especially since the Ball camp was so alarmed by the very concept dashing LaVar's dream that they leaked Lonzo's cranky knee into a surgical procedure candidate.

Weak. The light margarine of weak, actually.

The circus is really in town now, with so many possible acts waiting in the wings and it eventually dawning on LaVar that his dream isn't even gonna get to the wet stage.

 

Maybe the sportsbooks should be taking odds on whether LeBron completes his contract with Los Angeles.

Before it's up, dude just might be doing time for manslaughter.