During his time as an assistant under former Los Angeles Lakers GM Jerry West, Mitch Kupchak learned a lot about the business of basketball and putting a title-contending on the floor.
Kupchak could not have learned from a better teacher for arguably one of the toughest jobs in the NBA as general manager of the Lakers.
As a result, we are where we're at today. After acquiring Steve Nash, Dwight Howard, Antawn Jamison and Jodie Meeks over the summer, it's hard to argue that Kupchak is not in the elite class at his position.
During an interview with Sam Amick of SI.com, the Lakers GM was asked how content he was about the new Lakers' starting five:
A perfect example is that a lot of people say, "Hey, Mitch, you've got a great starting five, are you worried about anything or could you possibly wish for anything more?" And the first thing that comes to my mind is, "Yeah, I wish they were all 25." That's how I look at things. Yeah, it's a great group, but I wish they were younger.
After landing Nash in a sign-and-trade with the division rival Phoenix Suns, the consensus around the league was that the Lakers had vastly improved their roster with arguably one of the greatest point guards to ever play the game. Even though Nash was a huge upgrade in the backcourt, the fact that the two-time NBA MVP is set to turn 39 in February made a lot of people wonder how much the veteran has left in the tank.
Along with Nash's advanced age, the Lakers also have three other players in the starting lineup over 32 in Kobe Bryant (34), Pau Gasol (32) and Metta World Peace (32). Howard is by far the youngest of the bunch at 26-years-old.
With such a talented starting lineup the pressure will be on the team and coaching staff right out the gate. Nothing less than a trip to the NBA Finals will meet expectations for this revamped squad.
