After an abrupt but predictable end to their campaign, the Los Angeles Lakers are hoping to put this drama-filled season behind them. Right from the start the Lakers had all kinds of issues spanning from on-court chemistry to lack of leadership. This shouldn't be too surprising considering that their three best players are all ball dominant players who are more productive when they've been give the keys to run the show.

When they won they won the NBA championship a few years back, LeBron James and Anthony Davis were able to play off each other seamlessly. Throwing Russell Westbrook into the mix will disrupt that flow and create a bad fit. Aside from that issue, Frank Vogel never got a fair chance to really take the reigns and coach this team up to their potential.

Heading into the 2021-22 NBA year, the Lakers were heavy title favorites. Fast forward to right now and they don't even qualify for the play-in tournament. With all this in the fold for LA, let's now discuss four reasons why their 2021-22 season is the most disappointing run in NBA history.

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#1 – Rob Pelinka put together a dysfunctional roster

Last summer Rob Pelinka facilitated a trade with the Washington Wizards that sent Kyle Kuzma, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Montrezl Harrell and multiple draft picks to the nation's capital for Russell Westbrook. After that he targeted veteran free agents to surround the Lakers newly formed big three. After adding Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard, DeAndre Jordan, Kent Bazemore, and Trevor Ariza, the Lakers put together the oldest roster in the league.

The additions of Malik Monk and Kendrick Nunn added some youth and athleticism to their rotation, but it still wasn't enough. Monk played really well for the Lakers this past season, but Nunn was out injured for the entirety and never saw any playing time. All throughout the season they had a bunch of moving parts that never came together.

It seemed quite obvious that Pelinka sacrificed way too much for the addition of Westbrook and mediocre role players. Especially considering that LeBron isn't getting any younger and AD has been very injury prone of late. This all led to a lack of productive play on both ends of the floor for all of the 2021-22 season.

Pelinka may not be to blame for their poor play, but he did assemble this squad. Not to mention he made no effort to improve the team at the NBA trade deadline. If the Lakers are hoping for a different outcome in 2023, then Pelinka will need to shake things up for them. Making a few draft night trades and key additions during NBA free agency would be a great start to this.

 

#2 – LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Russell Westbrook didn't get time to mesh 

In his first season with the Lakers, Russ definitely had a tough go of it. In spite of this, LA's big three of James, Davis, and Westbrook only played 21 games together and went 11-10 during that stretch. So Westbrook could be to blame for the Lakers erratic play in part, but at the same time he was not given an entire season to play with James and Davis.

This in-turn caused a lack of cohesion play on both sides of the court. If given more time to play alongside one another Bron, AD, and Russ very well could have led the Lakers to the promised land. However, James and Davis were constantly in and out of the line up with injuries that caused them to miss significant time. If the Lakers do decide to keep this superstar trio together then giving them more time to develop on-court chemistry will be vital to their success moving forward.

 

#3 – Frank Vogel was on the hot seat all year long

Between horrendous play, injuries, and a ton of drama, Frank Vogel was made to be the fall guy. He was continually blamed for the Lakers shortcomings and was put on the hot seat. This now seems fitting with Vogel and the Lakers likely to part ways this offseason. In his defense, he had an unworkable situation in LA and had to manage a team in disarray as soon as the regular season tipped off. It wasn't too long ago that Vogel led this team to their 17th title in franchise history.

Far removed from championship contention, it does feel like Vogel never got a fair shot to coach this Lakers squad. Which is also surprising considering he got a contract extension just last season. Nonetheless, Vogel is likely out of the job and the Lakers are now in search of his replacement after another disappointing finish.

 

#4 – Los Angeles was lacking quality depth across the board 

Even though LeBron James had an MVP-caliber season and put up video game numbers all year long, it still wasn't enough to earn the Lakers a spot in the play-in tourney. Due to their lack of depth across the board, it took James having to put up 50 to 60 point performances for them to pull out quality wins. At 37 years old, that's far too demanding of a task for LeBron to take on.

Add to that the injury prone AD and inefficient play of Westbrook, Howard, Bazemore, and Ariza. Suddenly their playoff push turned into a nightmarish downward spiral. Melo, Monk, and Reaves were all bright spots for the Lakeshow, but outside of them there's still plenty of holes to fill on their roster. Reconstructing this squad with a lethal mix of youth, athleticism, and veteran leadership should be the goal for LA during the 2022-23 NBA year.