26-year old Dwight Howard is going to be the next great center in Lakers’ history as long as his back holds out.  Howard played in 54 games (all starts) for the Magic last year and he averaged 38.3 minutes, 20.6 points, 14.5 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.5 steals and 2.1 blocked shots per game.  He has now played in 621 games (620 starts) in his first eight years in the NBA and he is averaging 36.2 minutes, 18.4 points, 13.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.0 steal and 2.2 blocked shots per game.  25-year old Jordan Hill will likely be the top backup at center for the Lakers.  Hill played in 39 games (8 starts) for the Rockets and Lakers last year in which he averaged 14.1 minutes, 5.0 points, 4.8 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game.  Hill has now played in 158 games (19 starts) in his first three years in the NBA and he is averaging 14.6 minutes, 5.3 points, 4.2 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game.  23-year old Robert Sacre came to the Lakers in the second round of last June’s NBA Draft.  He played in 136 games in college and he averaged 21.7 minutes, 9.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, 0.7 assists and 1.4 blocked shots per game.  He played his college ball at Gonzaga.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE CENTERS IN 2012-13:  A+

32-year old Pau Gasol is still a Laker and they are going to be glad they kept him.  Gasol played in 65 games (all starts) for the Lakers last year and he averaged 37.4 minutes, 17.4 points, 10.4 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.4 blocked shots per game.  Gasol has now played in 796 games (790 starts) in his first 11 years in the NBA and he is averaging 36.0 minutes, 18.7 points, 9.2 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.7 blocked shots per game.  24-year old Earl Clark is going to be one of Gasol’s backups in 2012-13.  Clark played in 45 games (1 start) for the Magic last year and he averaged 12.4 minutes, 2.7 points, 2.8 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game.  Clark has now played in 138 games (1 start) in his first three years in the NBA and he is averaging 10.2 minutes, 3.1 points, 2.1 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game.  Jordan Hill and Antawn Jamison are also going to get minutes at power forward for the Lakers in 2012-13.  Hill will also play some at center, while Jamison will also likely play some small forward for the Lakers in 2012-13.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE POWER FORWARDS IN 2012-13:  A

32-year old small forward Metta World Peace was pretty lousy for the Lakers last year.  They hope he steps up his game in 2012-13.  World Peace played in 64 games (45 starts) for the Lakers last year and he averaged 26.9 minutes, 7.7 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.1 steals per game.  He has now played in 827 games (766 starts) in his first 13 years in the NBA and he is averaging 33.6 minutes, 14.2 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.9 steals per game.  It’s amazing to me that the Lakers convinced 36-year old Antawn Jamison to play for the veteran’s minimum, as he is clearly chasing an NBA Title.  He played in 65 games (all starts) for the Cavaliers last year and he averaged 33.1 minutes, 17.2 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game.  Jamison has now played in 985 games (858 starts) in his first 14 years in the NBA and he is averaging 36.3 minutes, 19.5 points, 7.9 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.0 steal per game.  Jamison will play both forward spots for the Lakers in 2012-13.  22-year old Devin Ebanks is back for the 2012-13 season, but he is going to sit near the end of the bench.  Ebanks played in 24 games (12 starts) for the Lakers last year and he averaged 16.5 minutes, 4.0 points, 2.3 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game.  He has now played in 44 games (12 starts) in his first two years with the Lakers and he is averaging 11.7 minutes, 3.6 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE SMALL FORWARDS IN 2012-13:  B-

34-year old Kobe Bryant is still going to be the focal point of the Lakers’ offense in 2012-13, he just won’t have the ball in his hands as much with Steve Nash on board.  That is a good thing for Kobe, as he will have less responsibility and more freedom on the offensive end of the basketball court.  Bryant played in 58 games (all starts) for the Lakers last year and he averaged 38.5 minutes, 27.9 minutes, 5.4 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 1.2 steals per game.  He has now played in 1,161 games (1,013 starts) in his first 16 years with the Lakers and he is averaging 36.5 minutes, 25.4 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.5 steals per game.  The Lakers made a nice move in signing 25-year old Jodie Meeks to give Bryant a break whenever he needs one in 2012-13.  Meeks played in 66 games (50 starts) for the 76ers last year and he averaged 24.9 minutes, 8.4 points, 2.4 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game.  He has now played in 200 games (114 starts) in his first three years in the NBA and he is averaging 22.1 minutes, 8.1 points, 2.2 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.  Youngsters will be duking it out for the #3 shooting guard spot in training camp.  23-year old Andrew Goudelock played in 40 games (0 starts) as a rookie for the Lakers last year and he averaged 10.5 minutes, 4.4 points, 0.8 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game, but he only shot 39.1% from the floor.  21-year old Darius Morris played in 19 games (0 starts) as a rookie last year for the Lakers and he averaged 8.9 minutes, 2.4 points, 0.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game.  22-year old rookie Darius Johnson Odom came to the Lakers in a deal with the Mavericks on Draft Night last April.  He played in 105 games at Marquette in college and he averaged 30.8 minutes, 15.7 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE SHOOTING GUARDS IN 2012-13:  A+

The Lakers’ offense is going to look much better in 2012-13 with 38-year old Steve Nash running the show.  Nash played in 62 games (all starts) for the Suns last year and he averaged 31.6 minutes, 12.5 points, 3.0 rebounds and 10.7 assists per game.  He has now played in 1,152 games in his first 16 years in the NBA and he is averaging 31.4 minutes, 14.5 points, 3.0 rebounds and 8.6 assists per game.  Nash is a career 42.8% shooter from three point range, so he will make teams pay for double teaming Kobe or Dwight Howard in 2012-13.  32-year old Steve Blake will likely remain the Lakers’ top backup at point guard in 2012-13.  Blake played in 53 games (5 starts) for the Lakers last year and he averaged 23.3 minutes, 5.2 points, 1.6 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game.  He has now played in 631 games (304 starts) in his first 9 years in the NBA and he is averaging 24.8 minutes, 6.9 points, 2.1 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game.  29-year old Chris Duhon will try to challenge Blake for the backup job in training camp.  Duhon played in 63 games (9 starts) for the Magic last year and he averaged 19.5 minutes, 3.8 points, 1.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game.  He has now played in 560 games (310 starts) in his first 8 years in the NBA and he is averaging 26.3 minutes, 6.8 points, 2.3 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE POINT GUARDS IN 2012-13:  A

24-year old Andrew Bynum is one of the better centers in the NBA when he plays.  That’s the problem though as he always seems to be banged up.  Bynum played in 54 games (47 starts) for the Lakers last year and he averaged 27.8 minutes, 11.3 points, 9.4 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 2.0 blocked shots per game.  He has now played in 332 games (240 starts) in his NBA career and he is averaging 24.3 minutes, 10.5 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 1.5 blocked shots per game.  Bynum is a player on the rise, but he will need good health to reach his full potential.

31-year old Pau Gasol will split his time between power forward and center this year.  The Lakers hope most of that P.T. comes at power forward.  Gasol played in 82 games (all starts) for the Lakers last year and he averaged 37.0 minutes, 18.8 points, 10.2 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.6 blocked shots per game.  He has now played in 731 games (725 starts) so far in his NBA career and he is averaging 35.9 minutes, 18.8 points, 9.1 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.7 blocked shots per game.  32-year old Lamar Odom will split his P.T. between power forward and small forward in 2011-12.  Odom played in 82 games (35 starts) for the Lakers last year and he averaged 32.2 minutes, 14.4 points, 8.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game.  He has now played in 829 games (678 starts) so far in his NBA career and he is averaging 35.6 minutes, 14.6 points, 8.9 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.0 blocked shot per game.  23-year old Derrick Caracter is #3 in line for the Lakers at power forward.  He played in 41 games (0 starts) as a rookie for the Lakers last year and he averaged 5.2 minutes, 2.0 points, 1.0 rebound and 0.2 assists per game.

32-year old Ron Artest is nowhere near the player he used to be.  He played in 82 games (all starts) for the Lakers last year and he averaged 29.4 minutes, 8.5 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.5 steals per game.  Artest has now played in 763 games (721 starts) in his NBA career and he is averaging 34.1 minutes, 14.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.9 steals per game.  31-year old Matt Barnes will likely get more P.T. in 2011-12 for the Lakers.  He played in 53 games (0 starts) for the Lakers last year and he averaged 19.2 minutes, 6.7 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game.  Barnes has now played in 497 games (162 starts) in his NBA career and he is averaging 21.1 minutes, 7.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game.  22-year old Devin Ebanks is likely #3 in line at small forward for the Lakers.  He played in 20 games (0 starts) as a rookie for the Lakers last year and he averaged 5.9 minutes, 3.1 points, 1.4 rebounds and 0.1 assists per game.  31-year old Luke Walton appears to be on the way out for the Lakers.  He played in 54 games (0 starts) for the Lakers last year and he averaged 9.0 minutes, 1.7 points, 1.2 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game.  Walton has now played in 484 games (138 starts) in his NBA career and he is averaging 17.5 minutes, 5.0 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game.

33-year old shooting guard Kobe Bryant is still a force for the Lakers.  He played in 82 games (all starts) for the Lakers last year and he averaged 33.9 minutes, 25.3 points, 5.1 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.2 steals per game.  Bryant has now played in 1,103 games (955 starts) for the Lakers in his career and he is averaging 36.4 minutes, 25.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.2 steals per game.  The Lakers would like to start playing Bryant around 30 minutes per game to save his legs, but that won’t likely happen this year without Shannon Brown back.  27-year old Trey Johnson would be Kobe’s backup if the season started today.  Johnson played in 8 games (0 starts) for the Raptors & Lakers last year and he averaged 11.8 minutes, 4.3 points, 1.4 rebounds and 0.1 assists per game.  He has now played in 12 games (0 starts) in his first two years in the NBA and he is averaging 9.0 minutes, 3.2 points, 0.7 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.  20-year old rookie, 2nd round pick Darius Morris out of Michigan will push Trey Johnson for P.T.

The Lakers didn’t get much production out of the point guards last year and they need that to change in 2011-12.  37-year old Derek Fisher is the starter by default as he is running on fumes right now.  Fisher played in 82 games (all starts) for the Lakers last year and he averaged 28.0 minutes, 6.8 points, 1.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.2 steals per game.  He has now played in 1,110 games (678 starts) in his NBA career and he is averaging 26.3 minutes, 8.8 points, 2.1 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.1 steals per game.  Fisher can hit down a clutch shot here and there, but that’s about the extent of his ability at this point in his NBA career.  31-year old Steve Blake played in 79 games (0 starts) for the Lakers last year and he averaged 20.0 minutes, 4.0 points, 2.0 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game.  He has now played in 578 games (299 starts) so far in his NBA career and he is averaging 24.9 minutes, 7.1 points, 2.1 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game.  The Lakers need these guys to step up this year.  22-year old Andrew Guedelock will be the Lakers’ #3 point guard in 2011-12.  He was a second round pick last June out of the College of Charleston.