The Cleveland Cavaliers have a really talented team. They have stars, they have high-level role players and they have good bench pieces. To build a contender you need all three, and while this team is yet to be battle-tested in the playoffs they are ready for that challenge.
The Los Angeles Lakers are a different story. They have two massive stars, with the GOAT LeBron James and Anthony Davis, one of the league’s best two-way bigs of the past decade. Around them, however, there is a severe drop-off in talent and reliability through the rest of the roster.
The Lakers have big stars, but the Cavs have true depth. When we rank all 32 players on the two rosters, which team has the better collection of players?
Just how different is the quality of each roster? Is it better to have the elite stars or the deeper team? That’s a binary question that fails to properly address the situation, as having two A+ stars and a bunch of “C” players is different than having a bunch of “D-” players, but it’s a helpful construct to start the conversation.
The Cavs have young stars and solid depth; the Lakers have proven stars and questionable depth. Which roster is better? Let’s go through and rank all 32 players on the two rosters before tonight’s game between the two teams. Not all of these players will suit up tonight, but this is a comprehensive look at the players available to both teams. We start at the bottom with those players unlikely to be in the rotation now or later for either team.