The Lakers finished off a successful homestand with a big win over the Spurs on Wednesday. LeBron James led the way, but he had some help down the stretch. That’s the formula everyone wants, but can it last? Plus, Bleacher Report’s Ric Bucher got Kevin Durant and a bunch of other players to go on record explaining why premier free agents might not flock to play with LeBron… and needless to say it caused some controversy. But once you get past some of the whining from K.D. about how LeBron is treated by the media, is anything he or the other guys said actually wrong? What does that mean for L.A.’s big summer plans?

All of that, plus the annual Hallmark Christmas Movie Game.

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The NBA is back! Like, officially!

And before it got going for real, we sat down for our annual predictions podcast, where we pick all the winners in both conferences, make our selections for the big awards, and cover some of the interesting overarching storylines that will define the year. Also, we talk about Paul George and the news he made this week.

Basically, once you’ve heard these 45 minutes, you can fastforward to the end of the year. Because we’ve told you everything that’s going to happen.

You’re welcome.

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We’re thiiiiiiiiiiiis close to finishing up the pretend games, folks. So how are the Lakers looking?

Better, with Lonzo Ball back on the floor, for one. He made his debut this week, and while there’s definitely some rust, overall his impact was pretty tangible. And with Lonzo back, the Lakers can now keep a ball mover on the floor at all times. That’ll help the second unit. Meanwhile, with the preseason winding down, some of the stuff we thought the Lakers might not be very good at… they haven’t been very good at. The three-point shooting has been spotty, and the interior defense as well (particularly when they go small). How Luke Walton protects the guys asked to fill the void, some of whom probably aren’t really qualified, will be one of his bigger challenges.

Finally… Jimmy Butler!

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It’s been a couple weeks, so apologies. – In this episode, we break down the schedule and all it means for the different forecasts currently bouncing around the NBA universe. There’s a reason predictions on the Lakers seem to be all over the map.

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Well, the Kawhi Leonard deal is done, and he’s heading north. Very north. About as far from Los Angeles as Gregg Popovich could send him, really. The Toronto Raptors took this year’s version of the OKC gamble,

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More or less, at least. A week or so after signing LeBron James, L.A. has filled in some holes, and have done so with an eye to keeping people like us talking. So where have the Lakers done well? Did the botch the Julius Randle situation?

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So the market seems to be percolating! Paul George! LeBron James! And now… Kawhi Leonard? How available is he? How much would/sho – So the market seems to be percolating! Paul George! LeBron James! And now… Kawhi Leonard? How available is he?

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It’s the first week without NBA basketball until the fall, and it came quickly given Golden State’s thrashing of Cleveland in the Finals. We break down that brief series, then break into the key questions coming after. Things like: –

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So… The Finals! It’s the matchup everyone expected. Any reason to believe it won’t end the way everyone expects? Do the Cavs have any real chance to pull the upset? And by that, we mean, “Does LeBron James have any real chance to pull the upset?

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An unusual amount of Lakers related stuff to discuss, considering the time of year. L.A. isn’t in the playoffs, and the Draft is still a few weeks away. Yet… – Julius Randle’s free agency was in the news this week,

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