3 Clear Upgrades Lakers Must Make if They Want to Surpass Bucks

The Los Angeles Lakers entered Milwaukee on Thursday night with the hopes of the power duo of LeBron James and Anthony Davis stifling Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks, and maintaining the best record in the NBA.

Instead, Los Angeles was defeated by Milwaukee by the score of 111-104, and James and Davis were singlehandedly dismantled by the Greek Freak. This showed that if the Lakers were to match up with the Bucks in the NBA Finals, they would struggle against the Eastern Conference juggernaut.

If the Lakers want to avoid this, here are three upgrades they need to make.

3. Get Another Consistent 3-Point Shooter

The Lakers need a consistent three point shooter alongside Danny Green. / Stacy Revere/Getty Images

As a team on Thursday night, the Lakers shot 12-of-35 from beyond the arc. The majority of those shots came from Danny Green, who successfully converted seven of them. The Lakers saw what Giannis Antetokounmpo did from 3-point land, and they couldn't answer back. Overall, Milwaukee made 16-of-39 three point attempts. Green can't do it alone for Los Angeles. Go get another long distance shooter and plug him onto the bench. We need reliability here. And speaking of that pine...

2. Improve Bench

The Lakers need more consistency off the bench. / Michael Reaves/Getty Images

Yes, the Lakers are going to put LeBron James and Anthony Davis on the court for excessive minutes per game. But what always works best is utilizing a quality bench to alleviate the pressure off the starters. Los Angeles' bench attempted nine shots, and got just four points. That's unacceptable. The Lakers' success will continue if they can get consistent scoring from their reserve players.

1. The KCP Spot

The Lakers need to find an upgrade of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. / Stacy Revere/Getty Images

The Kentavious Caldwell-Pope experiment is over. While yes, he did score 18 points on 12 shots, he only had three assists...as the team's starting point guard. That simply can't do, no matter how much LeBron James wants to shoulder the load. If the Lakers want to make that push to the NBA Finals, they need to find a quality starting point guard. KCP isn't the answer. Upgrade.