The Showtime Is Over

Are the Los Angeles Lakers the greatest disappointment in the history of the NBA? When Russell Westbrook signed in the off-season; the world shook in fear as perhaps the greatest threesome in NBA history was born: LeBron James; Anthony Davis & Westbrook. The triple-double monster was now bringing his talents to LakerLand and surely there was no stopping them. But some had sniggered secretly: was Westbrook really what they needed? They needed a shooter to open up space inside for James & Davis; and Westbrook is anything but one. He is a driver; and that is not what they need.

So as the season lurched from one disaster to another; it has now become clear that the Lakers will not even qualify for the play-in tournament; meaning they could not even be in the expanded group of 10 best teams in the West. This is absolutely shocking for a team hat had been joint favorites to win the championship; together with the also-threesome-led Brooklyn Nets.

You could see quite early on that Westbrook was not the right fit for them. All the naysayers were right after all. His ball-hogging & driving qualities are not quite suited for this Laker team. With his confidence ebbing away; he has resorted to more and more desperation and poor shots to become a symbol of the Lakers' downfall. The team overall do not have good chemistry; as they do not execute smoothly and seem a drastic total less than the sum of their parts. It must be said that injuries and the Covid pandemic did play a part; as the constant absences of their star men meant they couldn't afford a rhythm they badly needed. They might have been guilty of some over-confidence as well; thinking their star-studded roster could just turn up and win at will. It must be said that the Lakers started with an All-Star looking roster that included legends such as Carmelo Anthony & Dwight Howard. And it could also be said that some of their younger up-and-coming stars such as Talen Horton-Tucker & Kendrick Nunn started well but seemed to lose impetus as the season wore on.

In the end; the death knell came at the hands of the best team in the league Phoenix Suns; who beat the Lakers and eliminated them from playoff contention. It kind of wasted one of the career-best seasons for LeBron James; who even at the advanced age of 37 years old; is showing no signs of slowing down. Question marks now abound about the future of the Lakers; whether they will dismantle this talented roster; keep Westbrook or even coach Frank Vogel; who just 2 years ago was hailed for bringing this team the championship.