A dark gray cloud hangs over the Los Angeles Lakers’ 2012-2013 season.
Although the Lakers made some fantastic moves this summer—having the best offseason of any NBA team by my estimation—the question mark stamped on Dwight Howard due to back surgery he underwent in April is the main factor hindering the Lakers from being outright championship favorites this year.
Even so, Howard missing regular season games this season to ensure he’s back at 100 percent before returning could be a blessing in disguise for Laker Nation.
Lakers teams led by Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol are not strangers to having injured centers on the roster. In fact, during their back-to-back championship runs in 2009 and 2010, Andrew Bynum played in just 115 of a possible 164 regular season games.
Bynum became relatively healthy for both championship runs in the postseason, playing in 23 total games each time. However, his 17.4 minutes per-game average during the 2009 playoffs and 24.4 minutes per-game average during the 2010 playoffs made Bynum an afterthought to L.A.’s success.
In addition to his lack of minutes, the Philly-bound big man never notched double-digit points per game in the playoffs during the Lakers’ two championship runs. Bryant and Gasol ran the show and have some nice jewelry as a result.
The Bryant-Gasol tandem had great success when it was three to four years younger than it is now, so the Lakers’ past success with an oft-injured center does not mean they should be thrilled about Howard’s situation. Nevertheless, more factors than past triumphs could make Howard’s early season absence a net positive for this Lakers squad.
First off, the role players on this team will be asked to embrace a larger role than they’ll see come playoff time in 2013. Namely, Jordan Hill and Antawn Jamison should see increased minutes while Howard recuperates. If these two players can take advantage and help the Lakers jump out to a hot start, the absence of “Superman” may not mean all that much.
As a veteran presence who has already won a Sixth Man of the Year award in the NBA, Jamison should have no trouble adjusting to his new role in Los Angeles. He can return to a winning culture following a stint with the lowly Cleveland Cavaliers and take advantage by being the leader of a revamped Lakers bench.
The true test falls on the broad shoulders of Hill.
There’s a chance that Hill could start in Howard’s place beside Gasol to patch up the hole at the center position, but even if the former University of Arizona Wildcat doesn’t start, his minutes will see a spike.
Hill was productive in eight regular season games (one start) with the Lakers after coming over via trade from the Houston Rockets. In just 11.7 minutes per game, Hill averaged 4.7 points and 4.4 rebounds per game. To put those numbers in perspective, that translates to 14.5 points and 13.6 rebounds per 36 minutes.
Because of his production during the brief time spent with the Lakers in regular season, Hill saw an increased role in the 2012 playoffs.
The former eighth overall pick in the 2009 NBA draft averaged 18.1 minutes per game in 12 playoff appearances. His 43.4 percent field-goal shooting coupled with 68.8 percent shooting from the charity stripe were less than stellar to say the least, but Hill played with a high motor in his first-ever trip to the postseason.
If Hill can play well to start the season, the confidence he’ll gain will be invaluable to the Lakers’ second unit when Howard returns.
The team’s putrid bench play a season ago was its Achilles heel. Jamison and Hill should go a long way toward improving the second unit. The increased minutes for key role players will create an avenue to improve the Lakers’ second unit, but it’s not the biggest positive related to Howard’s recovery.
That distinction falls upon two veteran stars and how they might be impacted by Howard's absence. One is a new face and the other has two championship rings to his name: Steve Nash and Pau Gasol.
In an ideal world, Nash will be handed the reins to run the Lakers’ offense. The former two-time MVP kept the Phoenix Suns running like a well-oiled machine, even after the fancy rims got swapped out in favor of overpriced plastic, so running an offense surrounded by stars should make Nash feel like a kid in a candy store.
Although Nash won’t be able to adapt to Howard to start the season, he can still develop a strong on-court chemistry with Gasol.
The seven-foot Spaniard fits the prototype of a player Nash works with best; he’s a highly skilled big man who can operate both down in the post and out top thanks to his excellent mid-range game. Look for Nash to run a great deal of pick-and-roll/pop sets with Gasol before Howard makes his return.
Following a season spent overshadowed by Bryant and Bynum in terms of go-to scoring options, Gasol’s new floor general should get him plenty of touches and help him regain his confidence and swagger.
The Lakers defense could (and mostly likely will) struggle until Howard comes back to anchor and protect the interior. Nevertheless, the positives the Lakers could salvage from Howard’s early absence could go a long way toward establishing a championship-caliber rotation.
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