6 players the Lakers should have never gambled on
By Jason Reed
There have been a lot of great players in Los Angeles Lakers history. Some, like Magic Johnson and Kobe Bryant, were acquired in the draft. However, a long list of Lakers legends actually came from other means, whether it be free agency or via trade.
Los Angeles has bet on itself plenty of times throughout the years and has won, hence why the team has 17 championship banners hanging from the rafters. That being said, not every gamble in franchise history has worked out.
The Lakers should have never gambled on Russell Westbrook
This goes without saying. Lakers fans are just happy that the Russell Westbrook saga is over as it truly was one of the worst year-and-a-half stretches in franchise history.
The stretch from 2013 to 2019 may go down as the worst in terms of overall team success but at least in that era the Lakers were young, inexperienced and had an excuse for being bad. With Westbrook, the Lakers actively made a championship-caliber roster worse and guaranteed the team would not win a title.
Rob Pelinka saved face with an excellent trade deadline in 2023 that allowed the team to make it to the Western Conference Finals. That was not enough, though, as the Denver Nuggets swept the new-look Lakers team.
The 2021-22 Golden State Warriors were a great team. As were the Boston Celtics. But if the Lakers just didn’t get in their own way and kept the core intact then there is a decent chance that they would have been able to beat both of those teams in the NBA Playoffs.