It doesn’t matter how old LeBron James is or what he has besides him. A sweep by the Oklahoma City Thunder will haunt his Lakers legacy. If we see it from a simple lens, the Akron Hammer couldn’t push the Purple and Gold to a single win. But at 41, James and the Lakers still gave a fight. Game 4 was decided on some final possessions, with the Lakers coming just five points short. The truth is that the Thunder didn’t dominate the Lakers as much as analysts may have predicted.

“If we’re being completely honest, we were out-talented. We were not outworked. You know, they didn’t out physical us. They didn’t outsmart us. Um, you know, I feel like we were just out-talented, you know, by OKC,” James explained on Mind The Game.

It’s not like the Purple and Gold threatened the Thunder. OKC still imposed itself, forcing turnovers and causing havoc. But it wasn’t a blowout every time. The Lakers led at the half twice in this series. But eventually, they didn’t have the legs to compete against a younger roster that had more rest. Marcus Smart and Austin Reaves averaged nearly 9 turnovers amongst. Not having Luka Doncic to navigate through their physicality stunted the Laker offense.

But their talent still stepped up. Rui Hachimura turned into a shooting menace, averaging 20 points per game throughout the series. Hachimura shot 55.2% from beyond the arc, a ludicrous number. LeBron James shot 50% from the field, but again, couldn’t go on scoring tears due to age and fatigue. The Lakers weren’t dealt a fair hand, with Reaves also having returned from an injury recently.

The best thing to take away from that series was the Lakers’ fight. “I feel like there’s times where we had moments where we out IQ’ed them. But at the end of the day, we failed in talent, you know. OKC just possesses so much more talent than us,” said James.

The Lakers actually kept Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to modest numbers, at 24.5 points in the series. However, the Thunder had a plethora of players to handle the rock. Ajay Mitchell particularly stepped up, with six assists against just a single turnover. Only two of their players averaged multiple turnovers. That’s the kind of depth they have, even with Jalen Williams missing the series.

The Purple and Gold didn’t have the talent to match them without Doncic’s gravity. It was unfortunate, but the league keeps moving. Going into the summer, Rob Pelinka has to make several decisions to shape the future of the Lakers.

LeBron James, Austin Reaves, and more business await the Lakers

It’s only right to start with the four-time MVP. LeBron James is an unrestricted free agent. According to Shams Charania, contenders still believe the 22-time All-Star can be an impactful contributor in the right environment. The Lakers agree. Rob Pelinka publicly spoke about wanting to bring back the NBA’s all-time leading scorer for a ninth season. However, the team will likely not compromise if it affects their team-building operations.

As Pelinka said, “The archetype of the roster we want is going to be retrofitted around Luka and the things he needs. Clearly, he’s that leader and player for the future that we want to build the right way around”.

Luka Doncic reportedly wants Austin Reaves to continue being his running mate. He’s eligible to sign a massive extension after a breakout campaign, averaging 23.2 points per game. They’ll likely want to bring back Rui Hachimura with his potential to develop as a 3-and-D player besides Doncic. Solving the center crisis will be crucial. Rob Pelinka needs to hunt for an athletic center who can consistently finish plays. The team didn’t get that from Deandre Ayton.

There are some free agents, such as Robert Williams III, who could be cheap options. The Lakers also need more shot creators to avoid leaving all the brunt of the work on their starting unit. In order to compete, the Lakers need depth. That’s where Luke Kennard might also return to the team. That won’t be enough, but the Lakers have an entire summer to do the planning.

There are murmurs about them possibly going after Giannis Antetokounmpo. If another star joins Doncic, these dynamics will change, mostly limiting the Lakers from checking all the boxes. Nonetheless, the next few months are key. Depending on what Pelinka can work out, they might make the most out of Luka Doncic’s prime or risk losing another year with the cornerstone putting up MVP-calibre production.