The Lakers are at their best when 21-year old Andrew Bynum is playing center. The Lakers hope that will be for more games this season than last year. Bynum played in 50 games for the Lakers last season and he averaged 28.9 minutes, 14.3 points, 8.0 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.8 blocked shots per game. He has the potential to be a 20-10 player with health. Pau Gasol will be the back up at center for the Lakers and he is a solid player down low. Still, the Lakers are better with Bynum in the pivot. 28-year old D.J. Mbenga will be third in line for the Lakers at center as he played in 23 games in which he averaged 7.9 minutes, 2.7 points, 1.4 rebounds, 0.4 assists and 1.0 blocked shot per game. He shouldn’t get much playing time this season for the Lakers.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE CENTERS IN 2009-2010: A

Whispers abounded that 29-year old PF/C Pau Gasol was soft but he showed anyone that said that was wrong as he handled Dwight Howard quite well in the NBA Finals last season. Gasol will start at power forward but he will slide to center and get quite a few minutes there this season. Gasol played in 81 games for the Lakers last season and he averaged 37.0 minutes, 18.9 points, 9.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.0 blocked shot per game. Gasol will likely put up big numbers again this season for the Lakers. 29-year old Lamar Odom has re-signed with the Lakers and he will play a lot of power forward this season. Odom played in 78 games for the Lakers last season and he averaged 29.7 minutes, 11.3 points, 8.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.3 blocked shots per game. Odom would have no problem getting big numbers if a injury put him into the starting lineup. 26-year old Josh Powell will be #3 in line for the Lakers this season. He played in 60 games for the Lakers last season and he averaged 11.7 minutes, 4.2 points, 3.0 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE POWER FORWARDS IN 2009-2010: A

29-year old Ron Artest took less money to play for the Lakers and he has been a great player this pre-season as he appears to be on his best behavior. The Lakers hope that he acts his age all season but the early returns on him are good. Artest played in 69 games for the Rockets last season and he averaged 35.5 minutes, 17.1 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.5 steals per game. Artest plays hard on both ends of the basketball court so he will likely be a huge asset for the Lakers this season. 29-year old Luke Walton will back up Artest at small forward this season. He played in 65 games for the Lakers last season and he averaged 17.9 minutes, 5.0 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. He has started in the past for the Lakers so he would do a good job if he had to step in for Artest at any point this season. 25-year old Adam Morrison is #3 in line at small forward. He played in 52 games for the Bobcats and Lakers last season in which he averaged 13.7 minutes, 4.0 points, 1.5 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game. Morrison likely won’t get much court time this season for the Lakers.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE SMALL FORWARDS IN 2009-2010: B

31-year old Kobe Bryant can still take over a game whenever he wants to but he has turned into more of a team player and that’s a good thing. Bryant played in all 82 games for the Lakers last season and he has averaged 36.1 minutes, 26.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 1.5 steals per game. Look for similar numbers in 2009-2010 for Kobe. 25-year old Sasha Vujacic will be Kobe’s caddy again this season. He played in 80 games for the Lakers last season and he averaged 16.2 minutes, 5.8 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. Vujacic is also learning how to play point guard during training camp which will make him even more valuable to the Lakers this season. 23-year old Shannon Brown will be #3 on the depth chart at shooting guard. He played in 48 games for the Bobcats and Lakers last season in which he averaged 9.9 minutes, 4.2 points, 0.9 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE SHOOTING GUARDS IN 2009-2010: A+