Comparing Strengths and Flaws of New-Look Lakers, Clippers

The biggest piece the Los Angeles Lakers lost was Dorian Finney-Smith. After that, they also lost Shake Milton, Trey Jemison, and Jordan Goodwin.

The Clippers, on the other hand, lost a major piece in Norman Powell. The team also lost Drew Eubanks, Seth Lundy, and Patrick Baldwin Jr. They're expected to lose both Ben Simmons and and likely Amir Coffey, considering they can't pay Coffey what he's worth.

The New Pieces

The Los Angeles Lakers found some fantastic additions with Deandre Ayton, Jake LaRavia, and Marcus Smart. Additionally, they signed Chris Manon to a two-way contract. Most importantly, the team re-signed Luka Doncic to a three-year deal.

The LA Clippers fixed a plethora of holes with their additions to the team. The Clippers desperately needed an athletic starting forward in John Collins and found one. Additionally, they added Bradley Beal to replace Norman Powell, Chris Paul to replace Ben Simmons, and Brook Lopez to replace Drew Eubanks off the bench.

Which Los Angeles Team is Looking Stronger?

On paper, the Los Angeles Lakers have a much younger and sustainable team. Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, Deandre Ayton, Jake LaRavia, Dalton Knecht, and Rui Hachimura are all great pieces moving forward. However, the team may still have some major issues defensively during the playoffs when they have Doncic, Reaves, and LeBron James all playing together again.

Adding Marcus Smart to the team is an X-Factor that the team hopes will pay off to fix those defensive situations, but he's only played in 54 games over the last two seasons.

Barring any injuries, the LA Clippers look like they have a stronger team than the Lakers. There are almost no holes from top to bottom on the roster, other than their age. The problem is that age could potentially be a huge problem. The Clippers could either be very successful or struggle tremendously to keep their old roster on the court.

The LA Clippers were one of the most successful teams in the NBA last season before the playoffs began. If they could keep that level of momentum with their new roster, then they'll clearly be the better team between the two. However, that will be a big if.