Fisher: With Doncic, Lakers Will Not Decline Significantly

With LeBron James leaving Los Angeles to join the Philadelphia 76ers, will the Lakers collapse as a result? At least Derek Fisher does not think so. The former Lakers championship guard gave his view on a radio program: with Luka Doncic on the team, the Lakers will not decline as significantly as some outside observers fear.

Fisher's view is based on a simple fact—the Lakers went 53-29 last season, and the core structure for the new season is already clear: Doncic. Speaking on the 97.1 The Fan radio program, he said directly: “Think about the several teams LeBron has played for. After he left, which of those teams saw their records improve dramatically? So the Lakers will not drop off too much, because Luka is there.”

Doncic's numbers last season are convincing enough. The 27-year-old star averaged 33.5 points, 7.7 rebounds, 8.3 assists, and 1.6 steals in 64 games, earned All-NBA First Team honors, and won the league scoring title with 33.5 points per game. This is not a young core player who needs time to develop, but a superstar already in his prime.

In Fisher's eyes, the Lakers' new core is not limited to Doncic. Austin Reaves just produced the best season of his career, averaging 23.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game, and the Lakers retained him this summer with a four-year contract. Walker Kessler provides frontcourt defense and rebounding.

“I think Luka and Austin Reaves are basically an All-Star-level backcourt combination that you can put out there every night. Walker Kessler is a young, developing big man with elite-level defense and rebounding. So I think the Lakers have a chance. A 45-to-50-win season requires many things to go right, but I think that expectation is reasonable,” Fisher said.

What does a 45-to-50-win prediction mean? Compared with last season's 53 wins, that range does represent a decline, but it is far from a collapse. The sportsbooks' preseason win projection for the Lakers is 46.5 wins, making Fisher's prediction close to market expectations rather than a disastrous downfall.

Of course, the Lakers still face major adjustments. James averaged 20.9 points, 7.2 assists, and 6.1 rebounds in 60 games last season, and that production needs to be replaced. But Fisher's core argument is that the Lakers are not starting from zero. They have Doncic, who just produced one of the strongest offensive seasons of his career, Reaves coming off the best season of his career, and Kessler providing interior defense and rebounding.

For the Lakers, the challenge is no longer finding “another James” to replace James, but proving whether Doncic can lead this team to remain in the playoff race. Fisher's answer is clearly: yes.