The NBA is objectively more fun when the Lakers are good—and winning—and pissing everyone off. So it's important to be careful with Lakers praise. Especially in these lean years, it's easy for fans and media to read too much into moderate progress. In the blink of an eye, we go from, "Hey, wait, the Lakers aren't terrible anymore" to talking about next year's playoff expectations, free-agency dreams and promises about a return to dominance. This is the most successful NBA franchise of the past 40 years so I get it. I kind of love it. An imperious approach to the rest of the world is part of the Laker fan charm.
Long Live the Lean Years of the Interim Lakers
