The Los Angeles Lakers, LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Russell Westbrook have each enjoyed better years than 2022, at least on the basketball court.

The Lakers went 30-51 in 2022. LeBron, while still superb and defying Father Time, has dealt with a handful of injuries and repeatedly vocalized frustration with the state of the team. AD has missed 43 of 81 games this calendar year. Westbrook has somewhat rebounded from a dreadful 2021-22 season by accepting a Sixth Man role, though his crunch-time inefficiency continues to plague the Lakers.

With Davis out indefinitely and the Lakers mired in their latest downward spiral, there aren't a ton of reasons to be hopeful in the New Year. The further the Lakers fall in the standings, the less inclined Rob Pelinka — fresh off an extension — will be to accede to LeBron's wishes and cash in future draft capital for win-now moves before next summer. It's all been kind of a mess. (On a personal note, it remains wholly exciting to cover Los Angeles' most popular basketball team and #witness LeBron's greatness on a daily basis, despite the losing!)

So, as the calendar turns to 2023 and LeBron turns 38, let's revisit the most memorable Lakers moments of the year.

10) DeAndre Jordan's “pass”

The Lakers' wayward 2021-22 season was hilariously encapsulated by one perfectly inglorious moment.

In late February, as the Lakers trailed the New Orleans Pelicans by 28 points on national television, Jordan grabbed a rebound, took a few dribbles, and inexplicably attempted a 50-foot pitch-ahead pass to Wayne Ellington. The heave sailed remarkably far off target and nearly hit Rich Paul in his baseline seat (as somebody sitting in the press section a few rows behind Paul, I can vividly recall processing the confounding trajectory of Jordan's pass in real-time).

“My bad,” said Jordan. LOL.

The center — who epitomized the Lakers' misbegotten strategy of compiling a roster of washed veterans — was waived the following morning.

9) Austin Reaves' rise

For years, the most impressive branch of the Lakers' organization has been the scouting/player personnel department stewarded by Jesse Buss and Nick Mazzella. The Lakers have discovered credible rotation pieces up, down, and after the draft. The unselected Reaves is the latest noteworthy example.

Reaves' coming out party occurred in Nov. 2021 — a game-winning three-pointer vs. the Dallas Mavericks — and has continued rolling. As a rookie, Reaves became an instant fan favorite, a mainstay in the crunch-time rotation, and produced the most viral clip of the season.

The wing, who consistently earns plaudits from LeBron for his feel and IQ, has taken significant steps in his second season. His added weight has given him more confidence when attacking the basket. He's deepened his offensive bag (his post footwork is elite), made strides with his three-point shooting (a result of his stronger legs), and showcased a swagger he didn't quite have as a newbie. He's amongst the league leaders in charges taken.

Reaves is averaging 10.8 points on .516/.382/.904 shooting splits (entering Friday) and ranks second on the Lakers in plus/minus among rotation players. He's arguably their third-best player. A gem.

8) Anthony Davis' monster stretch

The resurgence of Bubble AD was tragically short-lived, as a stress injury in his right foot has sidelined Davis since Dec. 16. For a little over a month, though, his dominance was a sight to behold.

In 13 games prior to the injury, Davis averaged 32.4 points, 14 rebounds, 1.2 steals, and 2.3 blocks. He shot 64.1% from the field. His shot selection was aggressive, not passive. His passing was more sophisticated than ever (especially out of double teams). He played with an infectious physicality on both ends. He single-handedly gave the Lakers a top-10 defense (they are bottom-5 without him). He followed up a 44-point showing vs. Giannis Antetokounmpo with a 55/17 on the Washington Wizards.

More importantly, AD accepted the full-time center gig and usurped LeBron as the Lakers' Best Player — both necessary developments the team has wanted to see since the bubble. Hopefully, he regains that form upon his return, for the sake of basketball fans everywhere.

7) LeBron's scoring surge

In March, when the Lakers had effectively thrown in the towel, LeBron decided to make things fun for himself and the fans.

On an episode of “The Shop” that aired on March 4, LeBron said it “pisses me off” that he felt disrespected as an all-time great scorer. He validated those remarks over the next 14 games, averaging 34.4 points on his way to leading the NBA in per-game scoring. In the Lakers' four (yep, just four) wins during that stint, LeBron posted 56, 50, 36, and 38 points.

He seemed intent on becoming the oldest player in NBA history to win the scoring title but was forced to halt the charge after folks wondered if he was prioritizing individual record-chasing over his health. He strongly refuted the notion. Either way, he gave the fans something to appreciate every night. LeBron, MJ, and Kobe are top-3 all-time, in that regard.

6) Westbrook's exit interview

The first half of 2022 couldn't have gone much worse for Russell Westbrook, Professional Basketball Player. (We don't need to rehash the consequences of the trade, his fit with LeBron and AD, and the unfair blame he shouldered for the mess around him.) At a particularly depressing moment in March, Westbrook, a Los Angeles native, said he no longer wanted his family coming to home games to hear their dad get jeered.

His abysmal 2021-22 season culminated in an explosive exit interview press conference in which he pointed the finger at everybody in the organization besides himself. He took shots at LeBron, AD, and Frank Vogel and insisted that he whole-heartedly sacrificed for the team's sake (he didn't). He rejected a reporter's insinuation that he grew up dreaming of playing for the Lakers, despite Russ saying at his intro presser that he absolutely grew up a Lakers fan and went to title parades. Westbrook said the season was a failure in his mind because he didn't average a triple-double.

At that moment, it seemed unthinkable that Russ would be back with the Lakers. And yet, here we are. Darvin Ham deserves legit plaudits for spending the offseason massaging Westbrook's ego, engaging in honest dialogue, and planting the seeds for his move to the bench.

Speaking of the head coach…

5) Vogel gets fired 30 seconds after the season

Organizationally, a low point of 2022 was the manner in which Vogel was let go (the decision itself was warranted; Vogel is a solid coach but he lost the locker room). In January — hours after the most encouraging win of the season — The Athletic got wind that Vogel would've been fired had the Lakers lost to the Utah Jazz. Instantly, the coach who had led the team to a championship became a lame duck (his one-year extension was comical, as well).

Then, literally 30 seconds after the regular-season finale, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski tweeted that the Lakers would be moving on from Vogel, causing the coach — a nice guy and loyal company man — to learn of his fate in his postgame presser. The team didn't formally announce his firing until the next day after Pelinka met with Vogel personally.

The whole ordeal was a combination of cold-blooded and embarrassing. (In terms of organizational mismanagement, Lakers fans might take more umbrage with Pelinka's extension.) Somehow, it wasn't the strangest Lakers-related firing of 2022.

4) Russ fires his agent

Out of nowhere on a Friday night in early August, Russell Westbrook's agent of 15 years, Thad Foucher  — known for keeping a low profile — released a bananas statement announcing the termination of their partnership. Foucher implied that Westbrook sought a change of scenery and was stubbornly unable to accept that his game was in decline.

3) LeBron at Summer League, then Drew League

LeBron popped up twice during the offseason to take over our timelines.

In July, he made a cameo at the Summer League Lakers' first game. Also in the house at the Thomas & Mack Center: Pelinka, Ham, and a bevy of Lakers players, including Westbrook.

As somebody who sat two rows behind LeBron, I couldn't help but notice that everybody associated with the Lakers in the building — from Derek Fisher to beat reporters to Ham and Pelinka to active players — ventured over to pay respects to the King.

Well, everybody except for Westbrook, who conspicuously sat across the court beside the Lakers' bench. LeBron and Russ entered and exited from different sides of the room. Their non-interaction — coming on the heels of reports that LeBron wanted Westbrook traded — fueled speculation that their partnership had grown icy and untenable. But! Months later, the two stars seem to be all good (I mean, even Westbrook and Patrick Beverley are getting along).

Then, in August, LeBron entered the Pro-Am circuit. James made a stunning and exhilarating decision to appear in the Drew League, allowing locals to get an extremely rare and close-up opportunity to see him hoop.

LeBron mainly stuck to turnaround fadeaways (he couldn't make a 3 — kinda still an issue), but he did sprinkle in some electrifying slams on his way to 42 points, 16 rebounds, and 4 steals.

The Drew appearance was not without a Russ-centric subtext. The announcement of LeBron's participation came minutes after Westbrook fired his agent, to which LeBron and Rich Paul seemed to cryptically react. At King/Drew Magnet high school, LeBron teamed up with DeMar DeRozan, whom the Lakers nearly acquired instead of Russ and remains a reported target.

(LeBron's next Pro-Am run, at Jamal Crawford's CrawsOver league, was less successful. Chet Holmgren suffered a season-ending injury while defending LeBron, and the game was called off early due to floor conditions.)

2) Russ sends Rudy Gobert to the Netherrealm

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Westbrook generated the most scrutiny of any Lakers player in 2022 and the sickest highlight.

Russ' propensity for flubbed layups and, these days, rim-grazing dunks has, to many onlookers, symbolized concerns about the evolution of his game into his mid-30s as his athleticism wanes. Amidst the consternation, Westbrook turned back the clock for one of the dunks of the year — on the three-time Defensive Player of the Year, no less.

This season, it's worth mentioning, the fan reception has been much more positive toward Russ.

Westbrook may not like coming off the bench — and he'll always despise missing crunch time — but Lakers fans have appreciated his rediscovered joyfulness and no longer hold him personally responsible for the broader issues plaguing the franchise. All in all, the vibes between Russ and Lakers fans have been much healthier at Crypto.com Arena in the final months of 2022.

1) LeBron takes on the front office

LeBron likes playing for the Lakers. He's happy with life in Los Angeles, for business and family reasons. He voluntarily signed an extension in August. Before that, he inked a four-year deal with the club; a stark contrast from the year-to-year leverage plays he utilized with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

LeBron deserves hearty blame for pushing for the Westbrook trade and blowing up a young-ish, championship-proven roster. Frankly, I believe he was initially fine with the 2021-22 roster they put together, comprised of his good buddies and veterans whom he trusted.

Since the incessant losing began, though, LeBron has been at odds with the front office. He hasn't been shy about voicing his frustrations. In February, before the trade deadline, he said the team had no chance of competing for a title. After the Lakers didn't make any deadline moves — LeBron wanted the team to trade Russ and picks for John Wall — he and Anthony Davis were peeved when Pelinka indicated the stars were on the same page as the executive suite. James then spent All-Star weekend flirting with a return to Cleveland and praising general managers not named Pelinka.

LeBron signed his extension two weeks later than eligible, assuring that he can't be traded this season. At media day, Pelinka said the Lakers would honor LeBron's loyalty by seeking trades.

“Let me be abundantly clear,” Pelinka said unprompted. “We have one of the great players in LeBron James to ever play the game, and he committed to us on a long-term contract, a three-year contract. So, of course, we will do everything we can, picks included, to make deals to give us a chance to help LeBron get to the end. He committed to our organization. That’s got to be a bilateral commitment, and it’s there.”

On the eve of 2023: crickets.

LeBron was terse throughout training camp when asked about expectations for the team. Minutes after the first game of the season, however, he lamented the lack of shooting on the roster. Fittingly, he's spent the final week of the tumultuous year questioning whether the Lakers had the fortitude to dig themselves out of a hole sans Davis, signaling an unwillingness to spend his twilight seasons on losing teams — he's been playing awesome, of course, including a 47/10/9 masterpiece on his 38th birthday — and deleting tweets about never missing the playoffs again.

“I think about how much longer I’m going to play the game,” he said Wednesday. “I think about that I don’t want to finish my career playing at this level from a team aspect, I’ll still be able to compete for championships because I know what I can still bring to any ball club with the right pieces.”

“I’m a winner and I want to win. And I want to win and give myself a chance to win and still compete for championships. That has always been my passion, that has always been my goal since I entered the league … And I know it takes steps to get there, but once you get there and know how to get there, playing basketball at this level just to be playing basketball is not in my DNA. It’s not in my DNA anymore.”

So, yeah, it's been a rocky 12 months for the Los Angeles Lakers. The good news: 2023 can't get much worse, right?