As an assistant coach and longtime trainer, Phil Handy is well respected by the Lakers organization. So when he was caught taking a jab at GM Rob Pelinka on social media, it caught the eye of the entire NBA community.
“Facts,” wrote Handy in response to a quote by Dwight Howard, who said the Lakers could have gone back-to-back after winning the championship in 2020.
Phil Handy 👀 pic.twitter.com/xDhB7o98jo
— 🎗NBA•Fan🎗 (@Klutch_23) August 30, 2024
With LeBron James and Anthony Davis, the Lakers have been desperate to capture another championship but they haven’t come close to the feat since their 2020 run. Heading into next season, the Lakers are major underdogs and a far cry from where they were just a few years ago.
According to Dwight, Rob Pelinka is to blame for the Lakers’ decline, which began when he broke up their championship roster. With LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Dwight Howard, Kyle Kuzma, Rajon Rondo, Danny Green, Alex Caruso, and Kentavous Caldwell-Pope, the Lakers had an impressive case of stars and role players who meshed well together on both ends of the floor.
Head coach Frank Vogel found a way to maximize his guys and had the ear of the entire locker room during the regular season and playoffs. Somehow, even despite the breakout of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Lakers stayed focused on the mission and outlasted the competition in the unprecedented 2020 Orlando bubble.
They went 16-5 in the playoffs that year, with series wins over the Trail Blazers, Rockets, Nuggets, and Heat. LeBron James was named the Finals MVP with Finals stats of 29.8 points, 11.8 rebounds, and 8.5 assists per game. It was a major high point for the franchise and, to this day, Howard believes that they could have gone back-to-back.
But instead of doing everything in his power to keep the roster intact, Pelinka opted for a different strategy that summer. While they added several high-level veterans to the team, including Marc Gasol, Montrezl Harrell, and Dennis Schroder, they lost many of the core players who helped them win the title.
That summer, the Lakers said goodbye to Avery Bradley, Danny Green, Dwight Howard, JaVale McGee, Rajon Rondo, J.R. Smith, and Dion Waiters. Rob Pelinka thought to replace them with upgrades, but the changes worked against the Lakers that season.
They went from champions to a non-threat in the West. During the shortened 2020-21 season, the team finished 7th in the Conference and lost in the first round to the Phoenix Suns. It’s been downhill ever since for the Lake Show and, besides their run to the West Finals in 2023, they have not come close to replicating their 2020 campaign.
Had Rob Pelinka made a stronger effort to keep the team together, and run it back with the same crew, they would have been better equipped to defend their title and maintain their status as one of the best teams in the West. Instead, Pelinka mistakenly broke up the championship core and the team is still trying to recover.
Besides Phil Handy and Dwight Howard, countless Lakers fans have joined the act of condemning Pelinka and asking whether or not he’s doomed the franchise. At the very least, he’s responsible for their decline after the 2020 NBA Finals.
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