Lakers News: The Biggest Mistakes By Rob Pelinka And The Front Office

The Los Angeles Lakers’ torrid 2-9 run this 2022-23 NBA season isn’t entirely on the players taking the hardwood or their elite superstars. General Manager Rob Pelinka and the front office have their share of glaring errors that are a key factor in the sorry state the team is in at present.

With a roster deplete of sharpshooters, championship DNA, and experience, it won’t be a surprise if this unit falls well short of ESPN’s projected 42-40 finish and being play-in contenders as opposed to finishing in the top five in the West.

The Lakers have always managed to find ample space when it comes to making headlines. The offseason buzz was all about Russell Westbrook and the potential trade scenarios. His chemistry with Patrick Beverley and Darvin Ham. The fit alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis, and the trade picks involved with Myles Turner and Buddy Hield in the mix.

The regular season saw them go 0-5 before wins against the Denver Nuggets and overtime pipping of the New Orleans Pelicans. The two wins now appear to be a flash in the pan after the Purple and Gold lost four games in a row. Further compounding their woes are injuries to James and Davis, who have labored through spasms and pains to dish out consistent numbers.

It’s a long season, and with 71 games remaining, Los Angeles is at risk of falling short of making the playoffs for the second time in a row (they finished 33-49 last year), especially if there are notable injuries to their superstars (including Westbrook).

There aren’t many bright spots at this stage. While Westbrook has looked his vintage self after coming off the bench for the first time since his rookie year, the Lakers have seen some explosive scoring spurts, but that’s to that as their inconsistencies have been laid bare.

James has been vocal about what the front office needs to do in order to pull them out of the dire straits they’re in. While the draft picks have been protected, the 37-year-old veteran has stressed that the win-now move would be to do whatever it takes to bring the side within striking distance of winning another title.

After inking an extension, Pelinka asserted that the Lakers would do all that’s in their power to help the franchise win another chip, and that would mean constructing a roster around James that would see them stake another claim after winning it in the pandemic season.

But since then, the Lakers are still looking forlorn, and any trade developments have looked like nothing more than pure speculation, even the one that said Anthony Davis would be on the trade market.

With that, the front office runs the risk of committing another major mistake by not rectifying their flimsy roster situation. 

And as they look for avenues, here’s a look at some of the key blunders they committed over the course of the last few seasons, courtesy of some assistance from a Redditor who has compiled a list of mistakes (shown above) that has had long-term implications. 

Below listed is a more extensive explanation of the costly goof-ups that were listed by the fan.

2018: Didn’t Offer A Contract To Julius Randle, Who Later Became All-Star After Joining The Knicks

Was renouncing Julius Randle a mistake? It definitely was after he was selected with the seventh overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft. His stint with the Lakers between 2014-18 ended when he became an unrestricted free agent. He had a brief stint with the Pelicans before becoming a Knick.

Randle may have had his rant, but he’s made peace. Per the New York Post: 

“Do I wish it would’ve worked out differently? I don’t get into what-ifs. It worked out how it was supposed to. I’m happy where I’m at now. Everything in life happens for a reason. The highs and lows of life happen for a reason. It made me the person I am today and I’m extremely happy to be a Knick.’’

Not Los Angeles, though, as they lost a player who is a clear triple-double threat almost every time he suits up.

2018: Didn’t Offer A Reasonable Contract To Brook Lopez

Brook Lopez was one of the names that were expected to have an extension alongside Randle, but Magic Johnson reportedly ignored the pleas of the coaching staff.

They instead added JaVale McGee, Michael Beasley, and Lance Stephenson. Lopez signed with the Milwaukee Bucks in 2018 and later signed a four-year extension.

2019: Traded Ivica Zubac And Michael Beasley To The Clippers Leading To Jerry West Mocking The Franchise

In what was one of the more questionable trade deadline moves, the Lakers sent Ivica Zubac and Michael Beasley to the Clippers for Mike Muscala, with the intent of giving them a bit more shooting at the 4 and a roster spot for the buyout market. West reportedly laughed at how they acquired an intriguing prospect in Zubac.

2019: Refusing To Give Ty Lue A Long-Term Contract

Talks over Ty Lue as the Laker head coach broke down when the contract negotiations didn’t go as expected.

The now-Clippers coach, who won a title with James during their time at the Cleveland Cavaliers, was one of the front runners in 2019, and he expressed his feelings on how he was treated.

According to Silver Screen And Roll:

“The Lakers [saw it] more so as like [I’m just] coming to coach LeBron,” Lue said. “No, I’m coming to win. I just didn’t think I was treated fairly. And I wasn’t just going to accept any offer just to get a job.

“I just thought I was better than that.”

Would Lue have been a better fit for the Lakers? The answer would have been a yes, given the kind of work he did in Cleveland.

2020: Traded Danny Green And A First-Round Pick For Dennis Schroder, Who Left As A Free Agent

The fans may have slandered Danny Green during his forgettable bubble run, but he was a three-time champion who the Lakers could have used alongside Kentavious Caldwell-Pope as a sharpshooter. 

He played just one season with the Lakers before being traded along with the draft rights to Jaden McDaniels to OKC for Dennis Schroder. 

The German played one season for Los Angeles and even refused a four-year, $84 million extension to become a free agent.

2021: Traded Kyle Kuzma, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Montrezl Harrell, And The First-Round Pick For Russell Westbrook

In what would go down as harakiri, the Lakers traded their championship pieces for Russell Westbrook. The blockbuster trade blew up in their faces as the former MVP was a bad fit alongside the two stars. 

After garnering flak since donning the jersey, the 33-year-old has finally accepted a role coming off the bench and has been productive since (Note: He may not necessarily be shipped this season).

2021: Offering Dennis Schroder An $84 Million Contract, Who Luckily For the Lakers, Rejected It

Whether it was greed or a living god who saved the Lakers’ money, Dennis Schroder rejected a four-year, $84 million contract, and that was a boon for Pelinka and the front office. 

After missing a chunk of games of COVID-19 and averaging only 14.3 points and 2.8 assists while shooting 40.3% from the field and 31.9% from three-point land, he became an unrestricted free agent. He is now back with the Lakers in a one-year deal.

2021: Refusing To Offer DeMar DeRozan A Third Year In The Contract, Who Later Signed With Chicago Bulls

Every game that DeMar DeRozan plays for the Bulls and helps them win is pretty much salt that’s rubbed on the Lakers’ wounds. 

He would have been a perfect fit alongside James and Davis, but the deal fell through when the front office refused to go for three years in their contract. Now, he’s crossed 20,000 career points — a feat that showcases what he would have brought to the table for the Lakers.

2022: Construct The 2022-23 Lakers With The Worst Shooting Team

Those familiar with the cult sitcom Friends will remember one of their lead characters, Joey (Matt LeBlanc), roasted by a pregnant Celtics fan (Leah Remini): “Look at your man [Patrick] Ewing! He couldn’t hit water if he was standing on a boat.”

Sadly, this holds true for the present roster devoid of shooters. The Lakers don’t have any offensive firepower sans James, Davis, and for the time being, Westbrook. With the Turner-Hield trade yet to materialize, time is running out for the side that already has a sad record to show for it.

At the time of writing, the Lakers were dead last as far as offense numbers go placed at 30th with 29.3%. In the previous season, they were 34.7%. The position in their FG% is not exactly worth bragging about either, as they’re placed 26th with 44.5%.

There are ample instances of more Lakers’ front-office errors, some of them being active discussions by fans on discussion forums. Adding to the above:

Promising Drummond a starting spot which tanked the 2021 team even before the injuries

Choosing to pay THT over a proven championship-caliber all-defense guard in Alex Caruso

Wasting our MLE on bench scorers who can’t do much else every season

By now, it’s painfully clear that one move that landed them Davis isn’t enough to compensate for the string of errors that Pelinka and the front office committed.

The only way through for the Lakers is perhaps to trade their picks and one of the key players (likely Westbrook) to the Pacers duo or pull a rabbit out of the hat and land a superstar who links up with a hopefully healthy James and Davis.

One good move is all it takes. Can the Lakers do it? The ball is surely in their court. For now.

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