There is no question that the Lakers have had dysfunction this year and have been a disappointment.
Magic Johnson’s decision to step down as President of Basketball Operations shocked everyone. Jeanie Buss and Rob Pelinka hired Frank Vogel in what was a disastrous coaching search. But the news that was reported by ESPN’s Baxter Holmes has been overblown by the media.
Baxter Holmes’s story about the Lakers can probably be made by about 10 other teams in the NBA. Dysfunction is connected to losing and not meeting expectations. At one point the Lakers were 20-14 and looked like a legit playoff team that could be dangerous in the postseason. LeBron James’s injury hurt the Lakers chances of making the playoffs. When you don’t meet the expectations that you put on yourself then everyone begins to point the finger. The Laker tradition has always been about championships and until the Lakers contend for another title then the media will continue to overblow any story about the Lakers.
The media has made it very clear that very few free agents will consider the Lakers in free agency. But if the Lakers land a star free agent and build a better roster then the dysfunction of the front office will have been fixed. The players control what happens on the court and they shouldn’t pay attention to the outside noise.
Organizations all around the league have front offices that have done bad jobs and the media never mentions it because the Lakers are a more attractive story. The dysfunction needs to be corrected as soon as possible but it’s not as big as the media makes it out to be.
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