A Scoop of Free Agency #1

As soon as the Los Angeles Lakers were abruptly swept in the second-round by the eventual champion Dallas Mavericks, many Laker fans (including myself) feared for the following season. With the inevitable departure of decorated head coach Phil Jackson and the uncertainty of what next year's Laker squad would look like, many fans (again including myself) began jumping to sporadic conclusions. However, when the dust settles, there are definitely gaping holes in the Lakers' roster. One noticeable one was the outside shooting. After the departure of former Laker guard - Sasha Vujacic - and his horrid 5 million dollar contract, the Lakers lacked the essence of a pure shooter who could spot up in the corner and knock down threes. In the previous offseason, guard Steve Blake was supposedly signed to take up that mantle and utterly failed - shooting a disastrous percentage from downtown. However, with the plethora of pure shooters available in this year's free agent pool (Jamal Crawford/J.R. Smith/Daequan Cook to name a few) the Lakers should look  to acquire a consistent threat from the outside. Another spot in the roster which needs to be fixed is the point guard position. And although the Lakers have been proven to win without a true point guard -- that was with a Phil-Jackson-triangle-offense-run team which does not require a true point guard to properly run the offense. However, with the hiring of Mike Brown to fill Phil's shoes, Laker fans should expect to see a different style of play run next year. GM Mitch Kupchak may have attempted to fill the gap through the draft by selecting guards Darius Morris and Andrew Goudelock, both players with extreme potential. However, you cannot base success off of potential which is why I believe either Mitch searches for a point guard in free agency, snatches one in a trade, or relies on Steve Blake to make up for his horrendous first year with the Lakers. And although this Laker squad is packed with talent, except the Lakers' front office to mildly shake up the roster with basic acquisitions which will fill their needs.