The team reporter predicts the Lakers' rotation for the new season: Ayton and Smart as starters, with 6 players averaging at least 26 minutes.

On August 8, Beijing time, Lakers team reporter Jovan Buha discussed the team's rotation in his latest podcast. He predicted the starting five and the playing time for a 10-man rotation. His specific view is as follows—

Buha believes that a reasonable starting lineup would consist of Doncic, Reeves, Smart, James, and Ayton.“For example, against the Cavaliers, if Reeves were to come off the bench and the starting lineup included three taller forwards, one of them would have to drop down to guard players like Garland or Mitchell, and that person would likely be Hachimura. I think this would create a clear mismatch on the defensive end. Keep in mind that in the series against the Timberwolves, we already saw Hachimura being overextended defensively, having to guard some small forward and even shooting guard positions. Depending on matchups, he might even have to guard point guards, which I believe is definitely a poor arrangement.”

“From a matchup perspective, ideally, Reeves should guard the opponent's secondary backcourt players, Smart should guard the primary backcourt players, while Doncic and James take on forward roles, and Ayton plays center. If there’s a situation where Smart needs to guard an opposing forward, he can be switched to that role. I think at that point, James might have to take on more responsibility, and perhaps Doncic can match up against less threatening players or disrupt the opponent's offensive rhythm by exploiting matchup advantages.”

Buha then predicted the Lakers' 10-man rotation for the new season along with their average playing time.Buha stated that this is a rotation that leans towards the starters, with 6 players averaging at least 26 minutes, slightly more than last season.The specific allocation is as follows: Ayton 30 minutes, James 33 minutes, Smart 26 minutes, Reeves 34 minutes, Doncic 35 minutes, Hachimura 28 minutes, Liddell 20 minutes, Vincent and Vanderbilt each 13 minutes, and Hayes 8 minutes. Knect and Kleber did not make the rotation.

Theoretically, they do need a big player, and with Ayton, along with healthy backup centers Hayes and Kleber, the time spent playing without a center may decrease this year. I think Kleber is another player to watch; there are rumors that the Lakers are interested in him as a stretch big who can shoot threes, and he might win the backup center position. Additionally, his salary is nearly three times that of Hayes, and sometimes salary factors can influence competition for rotation spots.

Moreover, he has previous experience playing alongside Doncic, with both playing the four and five positions, respectively, when their team reached the conference finals and the NBA Finals. This could be one of the variables, and he might replace Hayes in the rotation.