Let’s not sugarcoat it anymore, the Los Angeles Lakers are an absolute mess. They sit 2-9 in the Western Conference and have failed to beat a host of decent but unspectacular teams, including the Utah Jazz twice and the Minnesota Timberwolves. Following last year’s disastrous end to the season, Lakers fans were hoping for the team to bounce back in a big way. Instead, they look even worse because their record is only one game ahead of the Houston Rockets, who have the worst roster in the NBA.
- 5. Lakers Don’t Have A Good Team
- 4. Russell Westbrook Is Not A Star Player Anymore
- 3. Anthony Davis Is Not A Franchise Player, He Is Injury-Prone And Unmotivated
- 2. Lakers Can’t Draft Victor Wembanyama And Are Forced To Win Now
- 1. LeBron James Is Finally Old
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The numbers simply do not lie, they rank 30th in offensive rating (103.9), 18th in defensive rating (112.0), 28th in PPG (107.7), and 24th in OPPG (116.1). In other words, the Lakers can’t score consistently enough or get stops in critical moments. That is why their record reflects poor play, and they have been almost unwatchable at times. How can a team with LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Russell Westbrook be so bad?
There are five major factors about the Los Angeles Lakers that everybody must know. Sugarcoating and hiding behind the most important reasons behind their failure must not be an option anymore, and the appropriate people must be held accountable. Here is the truth about the Los Angeles Lakers and why they have been arguably the most disappointing collection of stars in NBA history.
5. Lakers Don’t Have A Good Team
On paper, the Lakers looked primed for a Finals appearance. After all, how could a roster featuring this list of Hall of Famers ever fail: LeBron James, Russell Westbrook, Anthony Davis? Adding in some decent talent in Patrick Beverley and Lonnie Walker, Los Angeles was supposed to be a problem. But the NBA is a brutal league, and a team with a lack of shooting and enough scorers will not be able to compete in the modern game.
LeBron is 37, and he does not have the capabilities to carry his team to victories out of nothing. Russell Westbrook is 33 and a shell of himself, and Anthony Davis has been a disappointment. More on them later. When discussing the roster as a whole, they have a very poorly built team. They are overrated as a roster because they do not have a single role player who can come in and provide energy, even if Russell Westbrook is now coming off the bench. Unlike the Golden State Warriors, who have Jordan Poole, the Lakers cannot rely on anyone to be a fire starter.
To be fair, they are waiting on Dennis Schroder to become available to play for them, but even he is not enough. The Lakers desperately need a player who can provide 15-20 PPG on a consistent basis alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis. When looking at their bench, it is not good enough. The Lakers have the 19th-best bench in the NBA, as they provide 33.7 PPG. And who can be relied on to shoot the ball consistently? Absolutely no one. But who deserves the blame for the poorly-built roster?
The Lakers’ brass deserves their blame for a ton of reasons. Firstly, they gave LeBron James the control to make a trade for Westbrook instead of acquiring DeMar DeRozan or Buddy Hield. Secondly, they surrounded their Big Two with inconsistent players who do not defend. Thirdly, they willingly let go of key two-way players, including Alex Caruso, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and Kyle Kuzma. The roster is devoid of energy, scoring, and defense, which is why the Lakers have one of the worst teams in the league. The Lakers’ management (Rob Pelinka especially) has failed to build a contender, and they deserve the bulk of the blame without a shadow of a doubt.
4. Russell Westbrook Is Not A Star Player Anymore
No need to sugarcoat it, Russell Westbrook is declining rapidly. Anybody who knows anything about basketball will readily admit Russell Westbrook had arguably the worst season of his career with the Los Angeles Lakers last year. After getting traded by the Washington Wizards, the Lakers truly felt they could get the best out of a ball-dominant point guard with a below-average shooting ability. We saw how Westbrook fails to get along with another ball-dominant star, so trusting a 37-year-old LeBron James to somehow fix that was ridiculous.
He is averaging 16.1 PPG, 5.6 RPG, and 6.3 APG on 43.6% FG, 32.5% 3-PT FG, and 80.0% FT. He is shooting slightly better this year, but his scoring is down, and he is losing the joy of the game. Head coach Darvin Ham has found the best way to utilize Russ by bringing him off the bench, but the point guard is still not an impact player, and the team’s record reflects that. Unfortunately, Russ had a tendency to kill team chemistry by missing shots badly and turning the ball over. This year, Westbrook is averaging 3.6 TOV, and a turnover-prone, ball-dominant point guard without a three-point shot is the worst possible teammate for LeBron James.
Not to mention, Westbrook’s post-game comments and lack of responsibility for his play have also convinced almost every Laker fan that he is not built for this franchise. The Lakers roster is overrated (as mentioned before) because the big names don’t mean a single thing. Russ is no longer a star player, and by some accounts, he might not even be a starting-caliber point guard for a playoff team anymore. He has become increasingly defiant about his play and has not adapted well enough, meaning his addition to the roster was a big mistake.
3. Anthony Davis Is Not A Franchise Player, He Is Injury-Prone And Unmotivated
There was some false hope last year because Lakers fans truly believed that their season would have ended differently if Anthony Davis had been healthy. Perhaps if Anthony Davis had been healthy for the majority of the season, the Lakers might have held onto a playoff spot. That is not to say that Davis was great when he played, but he made them slightly better. Los Angeles was 14-25 without Davis this season, compared to 17-23 with him. While neither record is impressive, they looked like a slightly more formidable team when Davis was on the floor.
However, seeing what we have been seeing, that is not the absolute truth, and Davis deserves blame. It is expected that a 6’11” big man who can defend the rim could have made a difference in multiple teams against sub-.500 teams that the Lakers lost to without him. But that does not excuse Davis’ inconsistencies on the court because he is only shooting 26.7% from three and 76.9% from the free-throw line. Davis’ inability to stay healthy caused chemistry issues last year, and he is back at it this year.
It is never a player’s fault for getting injured, but it is abnormal how often the big man is unable to play. Does he change his training methods or diet? Is he hiring the best doctors? It is not as if Davis is banging down low every time, he is often on the perimeter. Being injury-prone essentially means Davis is not a franchise player and is actually expendable by all accounts. Other than injuries, Davis does not seem motivated. His body language, attitude, and post-game press conferences scream that he does not have a “Mamba Mentality.” In order for the Lakers to contend, they need Anthony Davis to be the most dominant and motivated member of the team, and he absolutely isn’t.
2. Lakers Can’t Draft Victor Wembanyama And Are Forced To Win Now
The Los Angeles Lakers could decide to wrap it all up and begin tanking. They could let Russell Westbrook control the ball and generate stats while the team loses and trade Anthony Davis and possibly LeBron James. Acquiring picks and expiring contracts as they have now would be a solid strategy for a team that is currently 2-9. But there is one problem, it won’t be of any use. They have given up their first-round picks to contend, and that means they are completely out of the Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes.
Even if the Lakers find themselves in a position to get a top pick, that pick would go to New Orleans due to the Anthony Davis trade in the past. So, in other words, the Lakers are NOT in the mix for the up-and-coming French star. They could fall down in the lottery and try to find a diamond in the rough, but that is a worse strategy than what they have employed right now. The Lakers are forced to win now but are unable to come to terms with the fact that they will need to pair two first-round picks to get rid of Russell Westbrook (or even Anthony Davis).
That means the Lakers need to surround LeBron James with appropriate star talent. The dream would be a player like Kevin Durant coming to town because then they can dangle Anthony Davis and first-round picks to get it done. It won’t be easy to acquire a top-20 player of all time in Durant, but that is their only hope. There are doubts that even Buddy Hield and Myles Turner won’t fix the roster, and the Lakers’ lack of tanking strategy means they are in a very difficult spot.
1. LeBron James Is Finally Old
Unfortunately, LeBron James might be fighting Father Time by the day right now. There is clearly something wrong with The King because he keeps getting hurt and is shooting extremely poorly. James is shooting under 50% from the field, which is strange for him, and his three-point shot has completely abandoned him. He is missing badly, lacks elevation, and does not have it right now. While it is not fair to criticize a 37-year-old for a team’s poor play, LeBron is part of the problem.
There is no doubt that LeBron James was spectacular on the offensive end of the floor last year, putting up 30.3 PPG on 52.4% from the field and 35.9% from three. The King had an extra spring in his step on the offensive end this season, and we have not seen a player at age 37 score the ball like he did, a testament to his greatness as an all-time great superstar. But even at his scoring best last year, he was non-existent on defense, and his points were mainly empty calories.
He is off to a similar start this year, failing to defend at a high level and not having an impactful scoring ability. James has mastered the game of basketball and getting good shots, but he is not shooting great and not impacting the game enough right now. Being a hole on defense and an inconsistent outside shooter are clear signs that The King is dealing with Father Time and might be human after all.
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