The Los Angeles Lakers are heading into a vitally important season for the franchise in 2013-14, as Kobe Bryant is returning from an injury and now that Dwight Howard is gone, coach Mike D'Antoni can truly put his stamp on the team.
Bryant will obviously be the key to the success of the team in his recovery from an Achilles injury and despite losing Howard to the Rockets, could the Lakers be better this season than they were last year? The entire season the Lakers had to deal with the Howard saga and what he would do at the end of the year and he never got along with the coach, system or Bryant and now that he is gone, things may go smoother despite the roster not being as great without Howard there.
The Lakers made some arguable solid moves in the offseason, signing Nick Young, Wesley Johnson, Chris Kaman and Jordan Farmar as well as drafting Ryan Kelly and while on paper they might not be as talented as last season, they could be better for Mike D's system. Last season the team won just 45 games, but D'Antoni did not have a full offseason and camp with the team and now he will be able to start from scratch and with Pau Gasol not having to worry about Howard anymore, he could have a career year.
While Gasol averaged a career low 13 points per game last season, teaming with Chris Kaman could help him produce more after averaging under 10 rebounds and that could be the jolt he needs to get back into the groove of playing more consistent. Nick Young is a talented player that never reached his full potential and playing in this system could actually be very beneficial to him and according to ESPN.com, some of his assist percentages were the best in the league last season.
Ryan Kelly can shoot the three and adding Farmar and Elias Harris to the bench will add depth to the roster and if Steve Nash and Gasol can stay healthy, the Lakers still could win 50 games. Johnson averaged 8.0 points and 2.5 rebounds last season and he could be a very solid addition to the team after playing under 20 minutes per game last year. The Lakers were one of the top scoring teams in the NBA last season and if they can improve their defense just a little bit, they could be a factor out West.
