The 2021-22 Los Angeles Lakers will go down in infamy as one of the biggest disappointments in franchise history. They failed to get to the play-in tournament and couldn’t even play above .500 basketball for most of the season.
LeBron James put his GM hat on and, this time, it didn’t work out. According to multiple reports, he pushed Rob Pelinka to make moves, nixed other moves, and pretty much put together a roster that wasn’t a good fit even for those who aren’t exactly basketball connoisseurs.
Now, some fans are giving him a pass after the team’s disappointing season, while others want to hold him accountable for what he did. Needless to say, their elimination from playoff contention was the talk of the night on NBA Twitter.
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Russell Westbrook’s addition was a disaster. Anthony Davis couldn’t stay healthy. The veterans failed to step up. LeBron put up huge numbers, most of them in garbage time. Frank Vogel never had a clue.
It’s hard to point out the one single thing that doomed the Lakers’ season. They had bad luck, struggled with injuries, the coach wasn’t too helpful, and their body language was off. It doesn’t matter anymore.
The worst part is that the Lakers‘ tough salary cap situation will only make it quite tricky to reshape this roster in the offseason, especially if they’re unable to offload Westbrook’s mammoth deal.
LeBron still has one year left in his deal before becoming an unrestricted free agent, so the front office better get to work if they want him to extend his stay in Los Angeles beyond the 2022-23 campaign.
This time, however, all decisions should be made by those in charge of the team, even if that means standing up to a guy that’s been known for shaping rosters at will throughout his entire career.
