The Los Angeles Lakers and the New York Knicks have one thing in common right now and that is that both franchises are on rebuild mode.
Both were unable to land big name players in the offseason, although they do have a couple of rookies as a consolation. But the reality of it all is that the said rookies may not be enough to help the teams take off that rebuilding mode tag so now, it looks like it will be a race on which team can get ahead of the other.
For the Knicks, the team is not among the favorites this season. Carmelo Anthony may be there but the lack of bench support is glaring. They did get Robin Lopez, Arron Afflalo, and Kristaps Porzingis, but one gets the feeling that the Knicks lack a certain kick that could at least place them among the dark horses of the Eastern Conference.
The Lakers are practically in the same vote. They do have Kobe Bryant in tow and did add some players who are not-so-bad bench players. They have Roy Hibbert, Lou Williams, and Brandon Bass, not to mention giving Metta World Peace another try.
They have sophomores Julius Randle and Jordan Clarkson back, and, of course, their top pick D'Angelo Russell to complete the charge. On paper, the Lakers seem to have a better chance of ridding themselves of the rebuilding tag, but the records of both squads show otherwise.
The Knicks are currently 3–4 while the Lakers are 1–5 as of this writing. What gives?
Bryant is, of course, struggling and holding back while Anthony is not. The Knicks bench seem to be fired up while the Lakers lack that spunk that led head coach Byron Scott to call them soft.
As far as pressure is concerned, the Lakers are obviously riddled with it, while the Knicks are quietly working their way around it.
Although still early on in the season, it looks like the Knicks could be the one getting rid of the rebuild tag first.
For the Lakers? It may all boil down to Scott. Can he at least motivate the players and play them as designed by the Lakers brain thrust? He does need to win but benching the young stars will not help.
Development is key and like it or not, Scott has to prove he has what it takes to egg his young stalwarts to perform at the National Basketball Association (NBA) level.
This early, Scott has done more finger-pointing than remedying the issue which is a bad sign.
