Why LA Lakers Have Crumbled Since In-Season Tournament
The Los Angeles Lakers (18-19) had a few question marks heading into the In-Season Tournament.
The team wasn't winning consistently on the road, but when the time came to bear down and get the job done, the Lakers hoisted the first NBA Cup.
Perhaps, when focused, the Lakers could raise their level of play to the heights that took the franchise to last year's Western Conference Finals. But that notion has rapidly faded, with L.A. losing 10 of its 14 games post-tournament.
TOP NEWS
Full List of 2026 NBA Awards Finalists
Luka Doesn't Make Final 3 Cut for MVP 🤔
SGA Explains FT Attempts 🤷♂️
What is the problem with a Lakers team that has had LeBron James and Anthony Davis healthy for most of the year?
Why can't they get the wins they need? Can the season be salvaged at the trade deadline? Is head coach Darvin Ham's job in jeopardy, and are we headed to a repeat of this flashback story?
Injuries Matter
A recent loss at home to the Miami Heat, who were without star forward Jimmy Butler, wasn't a great look. The team has struggled to stay healthy despite having James and Davis for at least 34 games apiece.
Notably, the Lakers' most significant offseason acquisition, Gabe Vincent, made five appearances before succumbing to knee surgery. His status for the rest of the year is unclear (though he could return in a few months).
The Lakers used their largest spending tool, the non-taxpayer mid-level exception (using $10.5 million of the available $12.4 million NTMLE) on Vincent instead of retaining Dennis Schröder, who signed for the full NTMLE with the Toronto Raptors.
Whether that was the right basketball move remains unclear, especially with Vincent on the mend. But Schröder is averaging 14.7 points and 6.9 assists per game with the Raptors without missing a game.
There's a truism in the NBA scouting world: Don't sign Heat role players.
If Miami is letting them go, it's for a reason—and they tend to over-perform for coach Erik Spoelstra.
To put it more bluntly, the Lakers were Nunn'd. (That's based on a similar move two years ago when the team signed Kendrick Nunn away from the Heat, only to lose him immediately to a knee injury.)
The loss of Vincent has left Los Angeles with few playmakers (Austin Reaves, D'Angelo Russell and James), and with only Davis (3.4) averaging over 3.0 assists per game.
Other injuries have complicated matters, notably to Rui Hachimura (concussion, nasal fracture and calf), Jarred Vanderbilt (heel) and, recently, Russell (tailbone contusion).
Predictably Underwhelming Shooting
The Lakers have not been a strong shooting team throughout James' tenure with the franchise, dating back to 2018. The title team in 2020 spiked briefly in the playoffs, but the team's identity has been bully ball in a three-point shooting era.
It can and has worked, but the math can be challenging.
James has returned to form after a down year, shooting 39.8 percent on 5.6 attempts. Prince (39.2) and Russell (38.8) have been solid, with Hachimura (36.8 percent) above average. While Reaves (34.9 percent) is near the league average, the rest are well below, including 30.8 percent from starter Cam Reddish.
The Lakers are 24th overall as a team (35.1 percent), per NBA.com, above only the Utah Jazz, San Antonio Spurs and Memphis Grizzlies in the Western Conference. Los Angeles was 21st in 2019-2020 at 34.9 percent, so that alone may not be crippling.
Is Value Added by the Coaching Staff?
The scout on Ham, from competing teams, is that he's one of the most likable guys in the industry, but he's not an elite tactician. In contrast, a coach like Rick Carlisle of the Indiana Pacers may be "grumpier" (per a Western Conference assistant general manager), but he's also "brilliant with Xs and Os."
Last year, Ham kept his team together through a difficult time until Russell Westbrook was traded to the Utah Jazz. Despite a terrible start, he kept his team together, which led to a surprise run deep into the postseason.
Similarly, the Lakers have hung a banner for the first In-Season Tournament championship. He'll always have that on his resume.
But Ham is in danger of losing his locker room, if he hasn't already.
Tactically, the rotations, adjustments, counters and overall strategy have been unimpressive. The starting group that got to the Western Conference Finals—James, Davis, Reaves, Russell and Vanderbilt—don't play together this season.
"Vanderbilt was exposed some since he can't score. Teams stopped guarding him in the playoffs," a Western Conference scout said. "And the defensive combination of Russell and Reaves is a problem for the Lakers."
Yet that group had success until it met the best team in the league last year. Ham hasn't tinkered with that lineup since Vanderbilt returned from injury to see if that was a Denver Nuggets issue or a broader one.
Instead, Reaves was sent to the bench, followed by Russell. Reddish, who is not well-regarded by most scouts consulted by B/R, has been a Ham staple in the starting unit. Reaves and Hachimura—in part because of injury—have seen their roles diminish.
With the team short a playmaker in Vincent, Ham hasn't prioritized staggering the minutes of James, Reaves and Russell to consistently have two on the floor.
The Lakers have some roster issues, a lack of heft at the center position, few players who can create for others, etc., but Ham hasn't been able to make the most of what he has, and the locker room grows restless.
A Roster That Only Got Worse
On paper, the Lakers seemed to have a decent summer. Vincent was coming off a strong NBA Finals appearance with the Heat. But, as noted, that hasn't worked out well.
The Lakers didn't address the size issue behind Davis. Christian Wood, who, like Reddish, does not have many fans in the NBA scouting community, is not a great fit. He hasn't shot well (32.4 percent from three), and despite a couple of decent defensive appearances (notably early against Kevin Durant and the Phoenix Suns), he hasn't made much of an impact.
Neither has Jaxson Hayes, a tremendous athlete who hasn't done enough on the court to earn consistent minutes.
The team chose two projects in the draft—Jalen Hood-Schifino and Maxwell Lewis—anticipating that rookies wouldn't have much opportunity to play this season (passing on a more seasoned player like Jaime Jaquez Jr.).
Injury has played a part, but the Lakers' roster is worse than last year, and the front office hasn't reacted quickly to fix what's broken.
Not Time Yet to Blame Everybody
The Lakers may be in 11th place in the West and outside the play-in tournament, but with 36 games played, more than half the season remains.
The team has plenty of time to recover. The win against the LA Clippers on Sunday gave a glimpse of what the Lakers can accomplish (the return of Russell added a desperately needed play maker and shooter).
The trade deadline is February 8, and while that may lead to the solution, the franchise only has so much to offer in trade. Perhaps its best bait is the team's 2029 or 2030 first-round pick. Because of prior obligations, those are the only picks (and, because of the Stepien Rule, only one can go) the team can trade.
Others like Max Christie, Hood-Schifino and Lewis may appeal to other teams looking to add prospects at different levels of development (Christie has some fans in the scouting world). The Lakers can try to package others like Russell, Hachimura and Vincent (even while injured), but the team's overall offer may or may not stack up against competing bids.
The team needs help at point guard and center. Adding shooting wouldn't be the worst move. If the Atlanta Hawks are willing to part with players like Dejounte Murray and De'Andre Hunter, the Lakers would undoubtedly be willing to bid.
One catch: Los Angeles has a hard cap at $172.3 million.
Currently at $167.4 million against that first apron, any trade must keep the Lakers below that line, including replacing players to the league minimum of 14 players under standard contracts.
That may or may not be easy, but the Lakers had a strong trade season last year.
A similar result could salvage the season, along with Ham's job and the team's pride after raising a banner in mid-December.
.jpg?w=600 "Post-Lawrence Trade Mock Draft 📝")
.jpg?w=600 "Bengals Extending Lawrence")
