Championship or bust. This has long been the mantra of the Los Angeles Lakers. When you have 16 Larry O’Brien trophies as an organization (dating back to the team’s days in Minneapolis), this makes sense. That said, when you have now gone 6 straight seasons without even making the playoffs, it is sort of comical that this team has carried the type of spotlight it has or had these these aspirations as something to even consider in recent years.
Last season that was supposed to change. Well, sort of. LeBron James’ arrival meant a return to relevance — even if he came without a second superstar in tow and would need major leaps of development from the team’s young core that surrounded him to get there.