2 unrealistic bold Lakers predictions for the 2025-26 NBA season

The Los Angeles Lakers are in this kind of strange transitional phase. They know that time is running out on LeBron James’ career. James dealing with sciatica is a telltale sign of his age, and at this point, with the NBA’s all-time leading scorer taking up a huge percentage of the team’s salary cap, it won’t be until next year or the year after that that the Lakers can build a team that’s tailor-made for Luka Dončić.

However, the The Lakers have a very good team right now. They still won 50 games last year and managed to keep at least a similar level of talent on the roster. Gone is Dorian Finney-Smith, and in is Deandre Ayton, Marcus Smart and Jake LaRavia. Those pieces don’t move the needle by themselves. But they address certain positions of need.

Alas, James will already be 41 years old by the end of the calendar year, and no one should be shocked if he slows down after many battles with injuries over the years. Even someone like James can slow down, as shocking as that sounds.

With James on the wrong side of the aging curve and Father Time having to take over at some point, there may be a change in the Lakers’ pecking order.

Until then, here are two unrealistically bold predictions for the Lakers for the 2025-26 campaign.

Austin Reaves he ended up being the Lakers’ leading scorer, averaging over 30 points a night

On a roster with Doncic and James, no one would ever think that Austin Reaves is the Lakers’ best scorer. But this isn’t just a bold prediction, it’s also an article that foregrounds an unrealistic prediction for the Purple and Gold’s upcoming campaign.

But for the Lakers to actually be a legitimate contender in the stacked West, Reaves may have to make his final move in true glory. And that includes being one of the top scoring threats in the league — enough to average 30 points per contest.

With James out, there will be plenty of hits to go around the entire roster. James had 18.1 shots per contest last year, which means there will be 18 more shots for the entire team in his absence.

Do Lakers fans want Rui Hachimura or Ayton taking those shots? Maybe not. Hachimura can be impressive when he’s on fire, but he’s not a great three-point shooter or the most independent shooter. Ayton, for as much athletic gift as he has, seems to settle for more difficult mid-range shots instead of going hard to the basket.

Doncic is intrusive for multiple uses, but has a reputation as one of the most dominant scorers in the league, meaning most opponents’ defensive attention will be focused on slowing him down. Teams will send a ton of double teams toward him, creating space for others, mostly Reaves, to operate.

Reaves’ development as an offensive player is something to see. Since breaking into a starting role near the end of the 2022-23 season, he’s only gotten better at scoring. He averaged 20.2 points per game last year and increased his three-point range and efficiency (37.7 percent on 7.3 attempts per game), and his true shooting percentage remained at 61.6 percent despite being more involved in the offense.

Reaves is only 27 years old and in the middle of his prime, so he has plenty of room to get even better. Even better, Reaves’ averages when James was out last year suggest he’s in for a monster season.

In nine games without James last year, Reaves set up 27.9 points, 6.6 rebounds and 8.3 assists per game on 49/43/91 shooting. It might come as a surprise to some, but Reaves has become a fringe All-Star for the Lakers, and he could reach his first All-Star game this year if he can maintain the pace he had last year without James.

The 27-year-old guard is the complete offensive package, as he can put defenders through the ringer like Doncic does. He can be annoying when he gets down to foul shots (he averaged five free throws per game last year), and he can get hit anytime, anywhere.

His average of over 30 points per game, even when James returns, is not out of the question, especially if the current oldest active player in the NBA cedes more control of the offense to his younger teammates.

Now it is far-fetched that he will score more points than Doncic next season. But Doncic missed some time last year and seems more likely to do so this season than Reaves.

As far as unrealistic predictions go, this one actually has a reasonable way to go.

LeBron James misses more than half the season

The most games James has missed in a season is 27, spanning the 2020-21 and 2022-23 seasons. He also missed 26 games during the 2021-22 season. But James has been healthy for the Lakers over the past two seasons, missing a total of just 23 games.

But James is a year olderand it’s totally concerning that he’ll miss the start of the season with a nerve injury that tends to linger, especially as he ages.

James, however, has a luxury he hasn’t had for much of his career — he’s no longer the best player on the roster. He doesn’t have to be the first option on a nightly basis. That responsibility falls to Doncic, and Reaves has proven to be more than capable of being a creator/playmaker in the secondary.

That way, James can rest and take his own sweet time to rush back to full speed and health, and the Lakers won’t have to suffer much on the court. Doncic has proven he’s capable of carrying undermanned teams into the postseason; James, at the end of the day, can reserve his best basketball for the postseason.

Don’t be surprised if James misses more than half the season.