During a recent interview with Silver Screen and Roll, former Lakers star Kyle Kuzma gave his true thoughts on the breakup of their 2020 championship crew. According to Kuzma, Pelinka was wrong for giving up on that roster when he did and it may have cost them a chance at another championship.
“I think it’s tough because they kind of gave up on me,” said Kuzma. “They gave up on that team a little too early. Rob [Pelinka] panicked a little bit. But you know in the NBA, things happen fast, you never know what’s going to happen next. It’s always like a revolving door so we had a tough, tough stretch so it happens.”
Kuzma, 29, was drafted 27th by the Lakers in 2017. He climbed the rotation and became a signature player during the post-Kobe Bryant era with averages of 16.0 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 1.9 assists per game on 44.9% shooting.
After LeBron James‘ arrival, Kuzma was one of the few players who kept his place and was designated as the third option behind James and the Lakers‘ newest arrival, Anthony Davis. Together, the star duo led the franchise to the NBA Finals in 2020 and they delivered the team’s 17th NBA championship.
Kuzma’s role in the run was relatively minor but his production off the bench and ability to stretch the floor provided a useful boost for his team. In the end, however, Lakers GM Rob Pelinka decided that he wasn’t worth keeping around.
That summer, months after winning the championship, Rob made a series of moves that changed the roster, including letting go of roleplayers like Kyle Kuzma, Dwight Howard, and Rajon Rondo to bring in Marc Gasol and Montrezl Harrell. The results were disastrous for the Purple and Gold.
Instead of putting together a strong defense of their championship, the Lakers struggled to keep up with their competitors and finished the 2020-21 season 7th in the West at 42-30. They lost to the Phoenix Suns in the first round.
It’s been downhill ever since for the Lakers and it’s hard not to see the changes in the 2020 offseason as the moment where it all went wrong. Over the years, several former Lakers players, including Dwight Howard and former NBA All-Star DeMarcus Cousins, condemned Pelinka’s decisions that summer. Kuzma is now the latest ex-Laker to speak out against Pelinka and there’s a growing sense of regret over the franchise’s decisions since winning the 2020 championship.
Today, Kuzma hasn’t come close to making a return to the Finals but he’s become a featured player of the Washington Wizards with ambitions of leading them to the NBA playoffs next year. Alongside Jordan Poole and Alex Sarr, expectations couldn’t be lower for his new team but all that Kuzma can do is make the best of his situation.
As for the Lakers, nobody when they will ever return to a state of title contention. With LeBron James and Anthony Davis, the Lakers are still poised to pose a threat in the West but without a strong supporting cast, there is little hope of making a deep playoff run. Looking back, it probably would have been better for the Lakers to keep their core together instead of trying to make unnecessary upgrades to stay ahead of the field.
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