2014-15 Los Angeles Lakers Preview

Oct 15, 2014 - 5:42 PM (SportsNetwork.com) - Forgive Kobe Bryant if he listened to the classic Rolling Stone's cover "Time is On My Side" on repeat this offseason.

I'd try convincing myself the same given his unenviable task of making the Lakers competitive on 36-year-old legs that suffered through a pair significant injuries the past 18 months -- not to mention the previous knee procedures he's received overseas through the years.

Bryant's competitiveness and resume are the stuff of legend, but the odds of revitalizing these Lakers seem egregiously remote, especially considering they finished last season with the most losses in franchise history and lagged 30 games behind the Clippers, who have become the 'big brother' in the Staples Center hierarchy,

Of course, Bryant was relegated to mere spectator in what he tweeted was a "(S---) season." Despite a rapid recovery from a torn Achilles, the five-time NBA champion was sidelined the first six weeks and promptly suffered a knee injury two weeks into his return.

Bryant watched the likes of Nick Young and Jordan Hill gain needed playing time, but with one of the league's worst defenses and a thin bench due to additional injuries to Steve Nash and Xavier Henry, the Lakers were doomed for the basement in the top-heavy Pacific Division.

Pau Gasol had another productive, albeit quiet, campaign, but the star forward bolted in free agency this offseason for a potential title shot in Chicago.

As much as Bryant contends the Lakers are not in rebuilding mode, that's exactly where they sit.

"We're here for one reason only, and that's to hang championship banners. Not division banners. Not anything else," a naive Bryant alluded. "You focus on winning championships, and I think that's very important for our young guys to understand."

Those young guys will have a new voice in their ear, as Mike D'Antoni resigned as head coach after last season's 55-loss disaster. D'Antoni has been wildly unsuccessful after his memorable "Seven Seconds or Less" spell in Phoenix, compiling a 188-254 record (.425) for the Knicks and Lakers from 2008-14.

For as much as D'Antoni is lauded for his high octane offense, he is equally criticized for ineffective defensive schemes. The Lakers finished second to last in points allowed last season (109.2) and only forced 14.2 turnovers per game.

Looking for a different approach, the Lakers brought in one of their own in defensive-minded Byron Scott. Scott was a three-time champion with the Lakers in the 1980s and actually played with Bryant in his final NBA season.

This is Scott's fourth tenure as a head coach, the last a forgettable three- year run in Cleveland that saw the Cavaliers win a total of 64 games.

But unlike his predecessor, Scott has Bryant's endorsement, and in Laker Land, that goes a long way.

Sometimes, you get what you want, just not what you need.

And the Lakers need a lot more.

2013-14 Results: 27-55, 5th in Pacific, Missed playoffs

ADDITIONS: HC Byron Scott, PF Carlos Boozer, PG Jeremy Lin, PF Ed Davis, G Jordan Clarkson, F Julius Randle, F Robert Sacre

PROJECTED STARTING FIVE:

PG- Jeremy Lin SG- Kobe Bryant SF- Xavier Henry PF- Carlos Boozer C- Jordan Hill

KEY RESERVES: G Nick Young, G Steve Nash, SF Wesley Johnson, SF Ryan Kelly, PF Ed Davis, G Jordan Clarkson, F Julius Randle,

FRONTCOURT: The Lakers and Bulls essentially swapped Gasol and Carlos Boozer, whose contact was amnestied and awarded to LA this offseason.

The switch can only be seen as a net negative, with Boozer coming off his most ineffective season since his rookie year. The 32-year-old power forward averaged a respectable 13.7 points and 8.3 rebounds but often found himself on the bench in crunch time because he's such a defensive liability.

Boozer, six years removed from his last All-Star appearance, joins a frontcourt with decent depth but underwhelming talent. Hill came into his own last season with career highs across the board, and Henry showed some promise before knee and wrist injuries cut his season short.

BACKCOURT: The Lakers' backcourt was a MASH unit last season, with Bryant and Nash playing a combined 21 games.

Nash, brought in as D'Antoni's de facto coach on the floor two years ago, has been unable to stay on the court. That trend is not expected to change with Nash turning 41 next February, so the Lakers went out and traded for Jeremy Lin, a cap casualty of the Rockets.

Lin, seemingly not the star he was in his brief time with the Knicks, averaged 12.5 points last season and has lowered his turnover rate each of his last two years in Houston. His playmaking ability is not up to par with the other point guards in the league, but a year under Nash's tutelage will undoubtedly help.

What Bryant brings clearly depends on how healthy he is. In six games last year, he was a step slower and scored in single digits three times, something unheard of in his heyday. A return to MVP form is far fetched, though anything is possible for the future Hall-of-Famer, especially with a chip on his shoulder.

"(I'm) just trying to see if I can prove to myself that I can be myself, and all the words and the doubts kind of adds fuel to that," brooded Bryant.

BENCH: An already makeshift bench took a big hit earlier this month when Young suffered a thumb injury in practice. Surgery on the torn ligament will sideline the shoot-only guard up to eight weeks.

If basketball were a one-dimensional sport, Young would be a borderline All-Star. He can fill the bucket with the best of them, averaging a team-high 17.9 in just 28.3 minutes per game last season and even garnered some Sixth Man of the Year votes.

Ed Davis comes over as a free agent after spending last season in Memphis, where his playing time diminished behind All-Star power forward Zach Randolph. Davis was averaging nearly 10 points a game for Toronto before being shipped to the Grizzlies during the 2012-13 season.

Wesley Johnson, Ryan Kelly and Robert Sacre have all showed they can be used in a deep rotation, but the biggest addition for LA is rookie Julius Randle -- the Lakers' first lottery pick since Andrew Bynum. The Kentucky product is a listed at 6-foot-9, is not built like a prototypical No. 4 and is unlikely to play small forward.

"I don't think he's great-sized," Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak said of the 19-year-old. "But I could see him bringing the ball up the court. I could see him seeing a gap, getting a step on a guy and making a play, whether it's finishing or finding somebody that's open. Those are ballhandling skills that you wouldn't see power forwards have very often."

Randle will take time to develop, but his seemingly endless motor and consistent production at Kentucky -- where he averaged a double-double and shot 50 percent from the field in his only season -- have the Lakers hoping they landed a steal with the seventh overall pick.

COACHING: Scott has taken on tough assignments before, namely being tasked with guiding the Cavaliers in the post-LeBron James era.

The results were predictably poor but nonetheless surprising, considering Scott had guided the Hornets to back-to-back playoff appearances before being abruptly fired nine games into the 2009-10 season.

The Hornets won a division title and a franchise-best 56 games under Scott in 2007-08 and were one of the league's better defensive teams, though none of that success translated in Cleveland.

Another reclamation project is in store in LA, and while he has plenty of veteran leadership in Bryant, Nash and Boozer, Scott will need more than one season at the helm for a turnaround.

"I love the fact that pretty much everybody has written us off, and I think that's fuel for the fire," echoed Scott. "I'm obviously gonna use that to the best of my abilities to talk to our players about how people are viewing us as a basketball team."

OUTLOOK: A more appropriate Stones tune for Bryant would be "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction," because the expectations he's putting on this team are laughable even for the most ardent Lakers supporter.

Nash has already admitted this is probably his last season, and while it would be a Hollywood ending for the two-time MVP to go out on a winning note, he'll join Barkley, Malone and Stockton atop the ignominious 'Best Players to Never Win a Ring' list.

A new coach and a healthier Bryant may prevent another embarrassment, but with few upgrades, a last place finish in the stacked Pacific is more likely.