Los Angeles Lakers: Lessons from failed super team, longtime rival

The failed super team from a few years ago is still haunting the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Los Angeles Lakers were lucky to be able to draft Lonzo Ball with the second pick in the 2017 NBA Draft. However, a past trade and the recent struggles may mean that a longtime rival will get the spoils of the 2018 NBA Draft, and their hopes and dreams next offseason may be in jeopardy as a result of poor play this season.

It is another season of turmoil for the Los Angeles Lakers. Injuries from stars Lonzo Ball and Brook Lopez, the swift regime change’s plans to sign two maximum contract players in the offseason, and catastrophe in the locker room against head coach Luke Walton have derailed any playoff hopes for the purple and gold.

Heading into the new year, Los Angeles has lost seven straight after losing to the fourth-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves led by superstar Jimmy Butler. They currently have the second-worst record in the NBA and are last in the Western Conference, just behind the Memphis Grizzlies.

Per RealGM, Los Angeles will deliver its first-round pick to the Boston Celtics if it lands between the second and fifth draft slot in next year’s draft. If it falls outside that range, the pick will be relayed over to the Philadelphia 76ers.

That is correct. The Boston Celtics or the Philadelphia 76ers will have the Lakers first-round selection in the 2018 NBA Draft. In a year that was supposed to be about building and moving forward, the Lakers are stuck losing once again.

So, how did we end up here? We take a stroll down memory lane back to the failed super team up until now, and what the future may hold.