Unless the Los Angeles Lakers go on a completely unexpected run over the next couple months, the 2021-’22 campaign is going to be looked back on as an unmitigated disaster with a very clear starting point. Ever since they traded for Russell Westbrook, they have simply not looked like a competent organization.
Typically speaking, seasons like this one are followed with legitimate overhaul. Yet by most reports, however, it’s extremely unlikely that Rob Pelinka, Kurt or Linda Rambis, LeBron James or, clearly, Jeanie Buss, will face any serious questions about their job security moving forward.
And sure, that core group did win a championship a mere 16 months or so ago.