At least one NBA executive believes the L.A. Lakers’ NBA championship in the bubble in 2020 should carry an asterisk. Daryl Morey, the President of the Philadelphia 76ers, told The Athletic it should. “Had the Rockets won the title, I absolutely would have celebrated it as legitimate, knowing the immense effort and resilience required,” he said.

Morey was running the Houston Rockets back in 2020, and they were eliminated in the second round of the bubble playoffs by the Lakers. Morey’s super small ball team led by James Harden and Russell Westbrook was no match for the LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and an elite defense, and the series ended in only five games.

In a look back at the bubble at The Athletic, NBA executive Daryl Morey — at the time with Houston, now the head of basketball operations with Philadelphia — said that the title LeBron James and the Lakers won in the bubble should come with an asterisk.

Aside from LeBron James' future and Luka Doncic's contract extension, one of the biggest offseason questions surrounding the Los Angeles Lakers is what role Bronny James will play in 2025. There's no question the 20-year-old guard experienced a steep learning curve during his rookie season,

"The biggest thing for Bronny is that he has to get in elite shape," Redick said via ESPN. "That's the barrier of entry for him right now. And if he does that, I think he's got a chance to be a really fantastic player in the NBA .

Bronny James showed out in the G-League for the South Bay Lakers in 2024-25, and he remains motivated to earn a full-time call-up to the Los Angeles Lakers in 2025-26. The former No. 55 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft averaged 21.