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2017-18 L.A. Lakers preview: Fans are ready to be exceptional again

Lonzo Ball is here and there are bigger dreams of superstars next summer. Are the Lakers on the verge of being back?

Listen to SB Nation’s Lakers preview here.

The Lakers will be a hot ticket because of Lonzo Ball. They have a fun young core, even though some wish D'Angelo Russell wasn't cast aside. They have dreams of LeBron James next summer. Beware. The monster is re-awakening.

Mike missed this one, so in his place, we welcomed SBNation.com featured writer Zito Madu and the Silver Screen and Roll / Locked on Lakers dynamic duo of Harrison Faigen and Anthony Irwin to the show to dive into the revived Lakers. Among the topics discussed:

  • What's the mood of a fan base in a word? This year might be cool, but are Lakers fans looking ahead to next summer?
  • The impact of Luke Walton on the team's young core.
  • Brandon Ingram -- are we gonna start seeing star potential? Do we need to?
  • Anthony vents about the D'Angelo Russell trade, because he's still mad.
  • But other than that ... hey this was a good summer. KCP! Kyle Kuzma!
  • Oh yeah, that Lonzo Ball guy. Probably should talk about him.
  • Jordan Clarkson and Julius Randle -- what happens to them now?
  • A Lakers fan friend has enough money to buy the jersey of one player on the current team, and it can't be Lonzo or Ingram. Who is it and why?
  • Who is on your Lakers all-time banana boat? (i.e., the players you'd love to hang out most with on a vacation).
  • Would you accept an equity stake in Big Baller Brand in exchange for a) being LaVar Ball's publicist, and b) having to follow him around nearly all the time?

Plus, predictions, your questions, and many more shenanigans.


This podcast was part of the Limited Upside podcast’s 2017-18 offseason series previewing all 30 NBA teams with members of SB Nation’s team communities and other friends of the show. We’ve spent the last two-and-a-half months gauging the temperature of every fan base heading into what should be a terrific NBA season. There’s no better way to understand what makes NBA fans in each market tick.

We began these in August and counted down worst-to-first leading up to the season. Here’s how to listen to them all:

  1. Nets with Kristian Winfield and Nets Daily’s Anthony Puccio
  2. Lakers with Zito Madu and Silver Screen and Roll’s Anthony Irwin and Harrison Faigen
  3. Suns with Bright Side of the Sun’s Dave King and Evan Sidery
  4. 76ers with Tyler Tynes and Liberty Ballers’ Kyle Neubeck
  5. Knicks with Kristian Winfield and Posting and Toasting’s Seth Rosenthal
  6. Magic with Orlando Pinstriped Post’s Zach Oliver and Cory Hutson
  7. Kings with Kenny Carraway and Sactown Royalty’s Tony Xypteras
  8. Mavs with Tim Cato and Mavs Moneyball’s Kirk Henderson
  9. Wolves with Canis Hooups’ Eric Goldman and John Meyer
  10. Pelicans with The Bird Writes’ Oleh Kosel and Travis Tate
  11. Hornets with James Dator and At the Hive’s Nicklaus Denning
  12. Pistons with John Ketchum, Kofie Yeboah and Detroit Bad Boys’ Lazarus Jackson
  13. Nuggets with Denver Stiffs’ Adam Mares
  14. Heat with Kelly Cohen and Hot Hot Hoops’ Surya Fernandez
  15. Bulls with Ricky O’Donnell and Blog a Bull’s Jason Patt
  16. Pacers with Whitney Medworth and Indy Cornrows’ Caitlin Cooper
  17. Blazers with Blazers Edge’s Brian Freeman and Peter Sampson
  18. Bucks with Kevin McCauley and Brew Hoop’s Mitchell Maurer
  19. Hawks with Harry Lyles Jr. and Peachtree Hoops’ Brad Rowland
  20. Grizzlies with Grizzly Bear Blues’ Joe Mullinax
  21. Thunder with Eddie Maisonet and Welcome to Loud City’s Joshua Broom
  22. Thunder addendum! Carmelo Anthony trade emergency pod with Eddie Maisonet
  23. Wizards with Sports Illustrated’s Andrew Sharp and Bullets Forever’s Michael Sykes
  24. Jazz with SLC Dunk’s Mychal Lowman and James Hansen.
  25. Raptors with Raptors HQ’s Daniel Reynolds and freelance writer Seerat Sohi
  26. Cavaliers with Fear the Sword’s Chris Manning and MMA Fighting’s Eric Jackman
  27. Clippers with Clips Nation’s Lucas Hann and former L.A. video coordinator Mo Dakhil
  28. Celtics with Paul Flannery and Celtics Blog’s Nick Gelso
  29. Rockets with The Dream Shake’s Ethan Rothstein and Jeremy Brener
  30. Spurs with Pounding the Rock’s J.R. Wilco and Bruno Passos
  31. Warriors with Golden State of Mind’s Bram Kincheloe

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