It’s an unusual time for the Lakers in Los Angeles. Rarely, if ever, have the Lakers been this bad two seasons in a row. After landing in the lottery last season, the purple and gold seem destined for a return trip this year.
However, not everyone is convinced the Lakers are going to mail it in the rest of the year. On Grantland’s Basketball Hour with Bill Simmons and Jalen Rose, ESPN senior writer Ramona Shelburne doesn’t anticipate the Lakers will stand pat and tank this year.
"They can’t [tank]. This is Los Angeles, Bill. The Lakers have missed the playoffs six times in their entire history. Since Jerry Buss bought the team, they missed it once. 1993-94 and they missed it last year, and they’re going to miss it again this year. You can’t do this in Los Angeles. This is Hollywood. When you are not relevant, when you are not in the game, people just forget about you. It doesn’t matter if they win a championship, [the Lakers] would rather be 8th and at least have their fans engaged in this season, at least have them watching the games….they have to be relevant. They can not not be relevant."
Shelburne went on to talk about the late Jerry Buss’ mindset that the Lakers can’t miss the playoffs. Later in the segment, Simmons and Jalen Rose brought up names like Josh Smith and Deron Williams as possible players they may target, although purely from a speculative standpoint.
While Shelburne isn’t wrong about Hollywood forgetting people, applying that to the Lakers might be stretching. The Lakers have built a franchise with a strong foundation for winning titles. Missing the playoffs a handful of years is part of the cyclical nature of the NBA. Smart money says they Lakers should remain patient and rebuild the right way.
However, at the same time, the Lakers are supposed to live up to the expectations of being title contenders while also giving Kobe Bryant a rightful farewell over his (presumably) final two seasons. They can’t do that if they’re tanking games for draft picks.
Armed with Houston’s first round pick and roughly $30 million in expiring contracts. The Lakers could make a move if they wanted, but it would need to be a blockbuster to help LA dig itself out of the hole they’ve dug to start this year
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