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

Remain Patient

To understand why almost no one wants to play for the Lakers, we must understand the reasons why players would want to go there in the first place.

For the better part of its history, the Lakers lured top free agents to go to Los Angeles because they could count on the large market and the fame of living in Los Angeles that went along with it. The problem? The league introduced the salary cap in 1984, wanting teams to be equal and fair. Big markets such as New York and Chicago to have the same amount to spend as smaller teams such as Oklahoma City.

Unfortunately, for Los Angeles, the lure of Kobe Bryant was not the same in recent years. With his health failing, the Lakers missed chances of contending because each team was seen as equal. This placed the Lakers in an awkward situation.

Kevin Durant, the major (and the only extremely valuable) free agent of 2016 signed with the Golden State Warriors. This forced the Buss family to target other free agents in the 2016 pool.

Center Timofey Mozgov, fresh off a Finals victory against Golden State, wasn’t viewed as a top free agent. However, everyone else missed out on Durant’s services. That meant many teams wanted to take in Mozgov. This led to a bidding war, in which the Lakers came out on top with a questionable 4 yr/$64 million contract for the Russian big man. They later did the same mistake by signing Luol Deng to a massive 4 yr/$72 million contract.

But the Lakers didn’t need to sign two free agents who were essentially useless once the season ended.

Walton and management should be patient with this Lakers team. The Lakers have something special in Brandon Ingram. Ingram is similar to Kevin Durant, as Durant acknowledged similarities inside of him, saying:

"“When Coach puts the ball in your hands and tells you to go, [Ingram is doing what] he’s been doing his whole life: he’s being a killer. I hate to see it, but if I was watching on TV, I’d be really excited for him because you can see that he’s learning and getting better. He’s growing as a player.”"

The shadow of Lonzo Ball has allowed Ingram to develop without much attention. It may be time to finally realize that Ingram could be a contender for Most Improved Player of the Year. Ingram’s confidence and talent have skyrocketed after an unsuccessful rookie campaign.

The Lakers have multiple building pieces to possibly contend in the future. Like Golden State, Los Angeles has built through the draft. The true building blocks should be Lonzo Ball and Ingram. They should be untouchable.

Many Lakers picks have returned great value. In 2015, Jordan Clarkson was taken in the second round and has proven to be a valuable asset off the bench. In the same year, Kupchak selected Larry Nance, Jr. Nance has forced his way through the rim like his father and is also a ball-hawk with 3.2 SPG per 100 possessions.

Finally, Magic may have ended with this year’s steal in Kyle Kuzma from Utah. He’s hit a rough stretch, but Kuzma is still averaging well over 17 points per game, an improvement from college.