EL SEGUNDO, California – Calm demeanor camouflaged LeBron James ‘frustrations over the season with the Los Angeles Lakers’ persistent defeat and various injuries. This calm demeanor also documented the way in which James could put his four-year tenure with the Lakers in perspective with both exciting highs (NBA 2020 title) and disappointing lows (two lost playoff appearances and one exit in the first). round). “I came here to win a championship. “I want to win more,” James told the Lakers on Monday. “I achieved what I wanted to achieve. But I’m still hungry for more. “I’m sure this organization wants the same.” James made the remarks shortly after he left with Rob Pelinka, vice president of basketball operations and general manager of the Lakers. About 90 minutes later, the Lakers announced that they had fired Frank Vogel from the coaching position after a losing performance in the playoffs in his third season, in stark contrast to the league they had won in his first season. An hour later, Pelinka spoke to reporters in part to pledge to do more to validate James’s audience’s trust in the organization. “We had a very disappointing season,” Pelinka said. “This will not happen next season.”
Pelinka refers to the handling of Vogel’s dismissal
The Lakers often suffered team injuries for their weaknesses during the season. And why not? The Lakers lost a total of 246 games due to injuries and another 41 related to COVID-19. With James (26 games) and Anthony Davis (42) treating overlapping diseases, the two Lakers stars played just 21 games with Russell Westbrook. Kendrick Nunn, a key free agent signing off-season, has never played a single game due to a bruise on his right knee. The Lakers played in 41 different starting lineups. Pelinka refused to insist on these conditions, saying that “it is a business with profit and losses. we are not in a job of excuse “. Under this context, Pelinka made some self-criticism. He admitted that “our roster did not work” after building a team of heavy veterans with Westbrook and a handful of role-players in the minimum veteran bids. The Lakers also lost some of their youth and depth to Westbrook last summer from Washington, including Kyle Kuzma, Montrezl Harrell, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and a first-round pick. “It starts with the front office, led by me and our ability to build the right roster,” Pelinka said. “It starts with the coaches holding the players accountable and ensuring that there is execution on the pitch. It is addressed to our training staff, making sure that it has everything it can to have healthy bodies on the field. It is up to our players to play with execution on the field at the highest level. This is what the Lakers fans expect and deserve from all of us. “When you feel frustrated, you have to take it easy and swear to make adjustments to get better.” The Lakers part ways with Frank Vogel However, the Lakers did not waste time stating that they believed that Vogel’s presence contributed to their shortcomings. “Today is not going to be a day to point the finger or unravel all the specific reasons,” Pelinka said. “We just felt at the highest organizational level that it was time for a new voice.” Pelinka said he had an “open and honest meeting” with Vogel on Monday morning. Pelinka then said he was grateful for overseeing the Lakers’ league season two years ago, adding that Vogel “was a great coach here and will continue to be a great coach elsewhere”. And Pelinka described Vogel as “a great man and a great coach” after expressing his gratitude for him and his family. “I respect Frank as a coach, as a person and the cooperation we had,” said James. “The few years here have been just honest and wonderful discussions. This guy gives everything to the game and he prepared us every night together with his coaching staff “. However, the Lakers did not show nearly the same professional courtesy to Vogel shortly after the end of the Lakers’ season on Sunday with an overtime victory over the Denver Nuggets. Shortly after the game, ESPN reported the Lakers’ plans to inform Vogel of his dismissal on Monday. Shortly afterwards, Vogel spoke to reporters and used an occasion when he shared that the Lakers front office had not immediately informed him of his future. “The basketball decisions made here are made by the basketball operations department. “I take full responsibility for any decision that is made,” Vogel said. “As for media reports that are fictional and without sources, we do not spend any of our time reacting to this kind of information in terms of how we make decisions here.” Does this mean that the ESPN report was inaccurate? “We do not respond to unsolicited media reports,” Vogel said. “As for the timing of our decision, I will keep it internal.” Are the Lakers ashamed that Vogel learned about his dismissal through social media instead of contacting him directly? “He actually heard about our decision in a personal meeting from me this morning,” Pelinka said. It remains unclear which candidates the Lakers will seek to replace Vogel. Pelinka described the next steps “as a very methodical process” with no expiration date. However, Pelinka admitted that he hopes the Lakers will hire their next coach around the same time as the NBA draft on June 23. “Obviously with a superstar in our team, we want a strong voice that can inspire players to play at the highest level of competition every night,” said Pelinka. “This will be one of the loudest qualifications we are looking for in terms of keeping everyone, from the top player on our team to the 15th player in a degree of responsibility.” The initial hopes of the Lakers to hire someone from the NBA draft are not only related to other candidate coaches who become available after some withdrawals from the playoffs. It also coincides with the Lakers’ hope to work with their next coach before the free Agency starts on July 1st. “I do not think that every time you make a decision about the roster, you will make a perfect decision and you will not make mistakes,” Pelinka said. “It simply came to our notice then. “But there will be a strong sense of cooperation with our future roster decisions, as it was with Frank during his tenure here.”
How will Pelinka and James work together?
Expect James and Davis to get involved in these discussions as well. They are always together in three seasons. Admittedly, they and Pelinka thought about how to make the Lakers’s league roster two years ago. They openly supported the Lakers chasing Westbrook even when they almost completed a deal to land Sacramento Kings guard Buddy Hild. However, James stressed that he has not become the shadowy GM of the team during his four years at the Lakers. “The front desk will do whatever it takes to help this ball club become a better top-down ball club,” said James. “If they ask me for my opinion, I will tell them my opinion. “But at the end of the day, they will make the decisions they think are best for the franchise.” After all, the Lakers have historically gone against James’s wishes on other occasions. They initially chose Vogel to replace Tyronn Lue, who coached James for four years with the Cleveland Cavaliers, as the two could not agree on the duration of a possible deal. Despite James’s public support for Westbrook, he would also support a deal for Hild. The Lakers have also previously admitted that they changed course as soon as they learned that Westbrook could be available. The Lakers also abstained from reaching an agreement before the end of this season’s trade deadline despite prompts from the locker room. On Monday, Pelinka offered public approvals from various members of the front office, including Kurt Rambis (director of basketball affairs), Jesse Buss (assistant general manager / scouting list) and Joey Buss (vice president of research and development). But Pelinka criticized himself for building the team’s roster. “The roster decisions ultimately rest on my shoulders,” Pelinka said. “I will take the opinion of LeBron and Anthony as our two leaders. I did it throughout my term. But at the end of the day, I’m in charge of the basketball business and will take final responsibility for how the roster’s decisions are made. Our dialogue with our leaders was open and very productive. But it is important to consider ourselves as the final decision makers. That’s the way it will go and it’s gone. “ After all, James admitted that the Lakers never told him directly about Vogel’s dismissal even during his exit meeting. “You can not worry about what is happening abroad or how people feel and things of that nature,” said James. “There are many things that could be done in a certain way better this way or that way, but once the decision is made, you will never make them all happy.”
What does Westbrook’s future look like?
The Lakers have a lot to go through, as they have only seven players on contract this season and at least eight vacancies on the roster to fill as soon as the free service starts on July 1st. Should the Lakers fill these vacancies on the roster with more scores, defense or youth? “All three,” James said. But part of that depends on what the Lakers do with Westbrook, who has a $ 47 million player choice next season. Sam Mitchell talks about how Russell Westbrook needs to regain his confidence. “One thing about Russ that I love and will always love is just his competitive spirit and what he brings to the game every night”, James …
