It has been an adversity-filled season for the Los Angeles Lakers. Coming into the season fresh off a wild ride to the Western Conference Finals in 2023, the expectations for this group were that they would be back at the top of the Western Conference standings and be one of the favorites to make it to the NBA Finals come playoff time.
Instead, injuries and other inconsistencies have largely crushed their championship hopes. LA has been playing very well as of late, winning eight of their last nine games. But with how competitive the West is, they still remain in ninth place, exactly where they stood before their recent hot streak.
The Lakers will almost assuredly be in the Play-In and be fighting just to earn a spot in the playoffs. Unfortunately, the team's disappointing year has also been marked by some disappointing individual campaigns. These are three Lakers players that fell short of their expectations this season.
Max Christie
The second-year guard has shown some promise, but his opportunity has still been limited overall. After playing 12.5 minutes per night in his rookie season last year, Max Christie has gotten on the court for just 14.8 minutes a game this year.
It is hard to generate consistency when you are not getting routine time on the floor, but part of that is because Head Coach Darvin Ham and the rest of his staff did not see Christie contributing at a significant enough level for him to be a big-minutes type of guy at this stage of his career.
We can argue all day about whether those criticisms are unfounded or not, but the reality is that this team has a championship window that seems to still be open. Giving away too many minutes to a younger player who still has a lot to learn could have been a detriment to what the team as a whole is trying to achieve.
Cam Reddish
One of the most interesting individuals on the Lakers' roster is Cam Reddish. Signing with the Lakers last summer on a two-year deal, many thought Reddish would be a solid option to improve LA's depth at wing, given his exceptional two-way potential.
But unfortunately, "potential" has been the defining word of Cam's career. No matter where he has gone, the conversations have revolved around what he could do if he had more opportunity, or how much better he could be making his team if his coach would just get him off the bench and into the game.
There has not been much lack of opportunity for Reddish this season with him seeing over 20 minutes a night, including 26 starts in 46 games played. While he has been far from awful, it is fair to say Reddish has still fallen short of putting out the kind of impact many anticipated he would in his first year with the team.
Scoring 11.0 points per game with the Portland Trail Blazers last season, it was thought that Cam could provide the same type of scoring boost in LA. But he has been putting up exactly half that at just 5.5 points on 39% shooting, leaving a scoring hole in the Lakers' roster.
Christian Wood
Another player added via free agency last offseason, Christian Wood joined the Lake Show on a two-year deal with a player option attached to the second season for flexibility's sake. The thought was that he would be an all-in-one solution for the Lakers at backup center after the team lost nearly all their options at the backup five from last season.
It is clear that Wood has not been a total negative, as his defense and rebounding have still been useful at times. But his overall impact has still been limited, and the Lakers have suffered as a result.
Last season, Christian finished in the top 10 for Sixth Man of the Year award voting while playing with the Dallas Mavericks. In 2023-24 with LA, he has averaged his fewest points since his 2016-17 season playing for the Charlotte Hornets. His rebounding average is his lowest since the 2018-19 year when he played just 12 minutes a night with Milwaukee and New Orleans.
Perhaps another year would do Wood well to build more consistency with his teammates. But as of right now, it is looking like the Lakers would not be faulted if they chose to go in a different direction while their championship window is still theoretically open.