The Lakers are spending part of their preseason in Slovenia, where Luka Doncic is hosting a mini-training camp and team-building trip as Los Angeles tries to get a jump on a season that looks very different from the one before it.
That urgency makes sense. With LeBron James gone, the Lakers are heading into a new era built around Doncic and Austin Reaves, who will be asked to carry even more of the load. The two have already shown they can work together despite both needing the ball plenty, and the Lakers are expected to add Walker Kessler, Jake LaRavia, and Quentin Grimes into the starting mix.
Even with that kind of lineup, ESPN’s league experts are not treating Los Angeles like a serious West favorite. In a poll on the likely winner of the Western Conference, the Lakers drew just two votes. The Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs were the runaway choices, collecting 88 votes and 74 votes, respectively.
“It will be surprising if there isn't a rematch of last season's West Finals, a seven-game battle won by the Spurs that seemed like the first chapter of the NBA's next epic rivalry. The Thunder (60.5) and Spurs (59.5) have by far the conference's highest over/unders for projected wins, according to DraftKings,” wrote ESPN's Tim MacMahon.
MacMahon also pointed to the Minnesota Timberwolves as a team worth watching. They received nine votes, and he highlighted the arrival of LaMelo Ball, saying the Timberwolves now have “arguably the league's most talented backcourt” alongside Anthony Edwards.
The Thunder and Spurs also have the benefit of continuity. Oklahoma City kept its core intact and added Aday Mara in the draft, while San Antonio stayed steady and brought in Tobias Harris.
Los Angeles, meanwhile, is trying to build on what it did last season. The Lakers went 53-29, their highest win total since 2010-2011. They opened the playoffs with a strong first-round win over the Houston Rockets even without Doncic, who was sidelined by a hamstring injury, before getting swept by the Thunder in the second round.
The Lakers have not ruled the West since their 2019-2020 title run.
In Other News...
Julian Champagnie May Be More Important To The Spurs Than Fans Realize
Julian Champagnie spent last season looking like the kind of complementary forward every good roster needs, the sort who doesnt always grab headlines but keeps lineups balanced when hes on the floor. His overall impact showed up in the Spurs on/off numbers, and that kind of quiet value matters on a team still sorting out which role players can reliably fit around its young core. He has already shown he can handle that supporting job effectively, which is part of why he keeps coming up as someone the Spurs may need more than casual observers realize.
The next step is less about flash and more about tightening the edges of his game. Better shooting consistency, more physical play and stronger rebounding would make his minutes even harder to take away, especially with his fit alongside the teams key pieces already pointing in the right direction. If those pieces fall into place, Champagnie could move from useful to indispensable, which is exactly the kind of leap that can quietly reshape a rotation. [Read more 🡒]
Stephon Castle Is Earning Praise For What Could Set Him Apart
Stephon Castles second NBA season gave the Spurs more evidence that his value goes well beyond the box score. He finished the year averaging 16.7 points and 7.4 assists, but the attention around him has increasingly centered on what he can do on the other end, where his defensive versatility has already started to separate him from a lot of young guards.
Castles trainer, Olin Simplis, has been among the loudest voices pointing to that side of his game, praising his ability to handle multiple positions and turn defense into a calling card. It is the kind of trait that can make a player stand out in a league filled with scorers, and it helps explain why some around the Spurs see a different kind of ceiling for Castle even as comparisons to bigger-name wings continue to swirl. [Read more 🡒]
Carter Bryant Has One Big Step Left In Spurs Core Build
Carter Bryants early run with the Spurs has already given the organization something it values deeply: a young wing who can make life hard on opposing scorers. His defensive profile has stood out from the start, giving San Antonio reason to believe it has another long, versatile piece to work with as the roster keeps taking shape around its next core.
The bigger question is how far Bryant can go on the other end. His development as a three-point shooter and a more reliable scorer will go a long way toward determining whether he becomes a useful stopper or a true two-way difference-maker, and for a Spurs team still building toward title-level expectations, that kind of offensive jump could end up being the final piece they are waiting on. [Read more 🡒]