Los Angeles Lakers
The 2021-22 Los Angeles Lakers can be defined by the fact that they finished 16 games below .500 and missed both the playoffs and the play-in entirely.
What did we learn?
It was an embarrassment of epic proportions.
The roster construction was even more flawed than we suspected. The fit with Westbrook was even worse than we feared.
AD and LeBron — but mostly Anthony “Street Clothes” Davis — could not stay healthy and on the court.
There was no chemistry. No continuity. No youth. No defense.
LeBron had to carry this Lakers team on his 37-year-old King-sized back time and time again.
Lakers’ Melo was a savior off the bench with all of his 3s to the dome.
The Lakers blew big leads constantly.
They got blown out regularly.
The defense, a previous strength, became an ultimate weakness.
It was one of LeBron’s best offensive seasons of his entire legendary 19-year career, the second-most points he has ever averaged in a season at 30.0 a night (!!), and it didn’t matter. No playoffs. Not even the play-in.
AD missed 42 games, over half the season, and when he was actually on the court he didn’t consistently look like the AD of old. You know, the Bubble AD version who helped bring the Lakers a chip. That AD would only surface every so often.
They missed Kuzma, KCP and Caruso dearly. How else did the Lakers still have the top defense during the 2020-21 season when LeBron and AD missed a combined 63 games?
The Lakers got embarrassed on so many occasions. We couldn’t help but ask: How many times can one team hit rock bottom?
It wasn’t just a failure, it was a failure of epic proportions!
Vogel got fired the minute the last game ended, but it wasn’t Vogel’s fault, not by a long shot. The Lakers season was doomed the second they traded for Westbrook. Compounded with the injuries, it was a recipe for disaster.
The Lakers should really thank the Nets, Sixers and Suns for their embarrassing playoff exits, redirecting the recency failure microscope.
Even so, nobody will soon forget this Lakers season.
But the chance for ultimate redemption awaits.
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Additional Notes
Avery Bradley could not make the final roster for the Warriors, but he started 62 games for the Lakers. And he was often included in the Lakers crunch-time lineups.
DeAndre Jordan could not make the final roster for the Nets, but he started 32 games for the Lakers. Lakers fans referred to DJ’s playing time as Make-a-Wish minutes. We’ll never forget his full-court pass that sailed to the moon in his last game as a Laker. (That pass was the final straw.)
Kendrick Nunn missed the entire season. He did not play a single minute.
Amidst all of the injuries, the Lakers had 41 different starting lineups this season. That’s a different starting lineup every other game.
Austin Reaves was an undrafted revelation, one of the very few silver linings of this Lakers season, especially in that last game of the season when he scored 31 points in Denver in an OT win.
Shout out to Stanley Johnson. He a real one.
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Did our preseason Over/Under prediction hit?
There is no denying that it will be bumpy at times, but here’s to hoping they figure this out. Over 52.5 wins.
Lakers 2021-22 record: (33-49)
Not quite.
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What’s Next?
Darvin Ham is the newest Lakers head coach. He sounds committed to making it work with Westbrook… but we can’t help but wonder if Rob Pelinka feels the same.
Get a new roster. There should not be much doubt that there will be a lot of roster turnover happening here this offseason.
If at all possible, find a trade for Westbrook. And get LeBron and AD healthy!
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Favorite Lakers Highlights of the 2021-22 Season:
37 years old. 19 seasons in the league.
Starting at the 5.
Two 50-point games in one week.
