Frank Vogel Says 'Time’s Running Out' on Lakers After Loss to Pelicans

The Los Angeles Lakers are 10th in the Western Conference with a 31-43 record following Sunday's 116-108 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans, and head coach Frank Vogel knows his team doesn't have much time to turn things around.

"It's not good. It hurts," Vogel told reporters after Sunday's loss. "... Time's running out on us. We came out with the proper urgency for this game, but weren't able to close it."

If the playoffs began today, the Lakers would be in the play-in tournament. However, there are still two weeks remaining in the regular season, and the San Antonio Spurs could challenge the Lakers for the final play-in spot. 

The 2021-22 campaign has been unbelievably disappointing for the Lakers, who entered with high expectations after being eliminated by the Phoenix Suns in the first round of last season's playoffs. 

L.A. shook up nearly its entire roster after that first-round exit. It added Russell Westbrook in a trade with the Washington Wizards, which is panning out to be one of the worst moves in recent memory.

Westbrook is in the midst of his worst season since the 2009-10 campaign, which was his second year in the NBA. Entering Sunday's game, he was averaging 18.2 points, 7.5 rebounds and 7.2 assists per game while shooting 43.8 percent from the floor and 29.4 percent from deep.

The 33-year-old has struggled to develop chemistry with his teammates, and his performance led the Lakers to explore trading him before the Feb. 10 deadline. But while Westbrook has been subpar, L.A.'s other offseason additions such as Kent Bazemore and Trevor Ariza also haven't panned out. 

However, the franchise knew it was going to face its challenges in terms of depth after the acquisition of Westbrook's $44.2 million salary. Lakers owner Jeanie Buss said in August that filling out the remainder of the team's roster had been a "challenge." 

In addition to roster struggles, both of the Lakers' superstars—LeBron James and Anthony Davis—have missed a number of games with injuries. Davis has been sidelined since Feb. 16 with a foot injury, while James could miss more time after suffering an ankle injury on Sunday, though that remains unclear. 

With L.A.'s title hopes all but gone, the team might soon begin preparing and retooling the roster for the 2022-23 campaign, which could be James' last wearing the Purple and Gold.