5 Problems the L.A. Lakers Must Solve Before the End of the Season

Despite a 10-10 start, the Los Angeles Lakers' season has not gone well. 

They are 9-39 (29th in the league) with an average scoring difference of -8.0 (29th) since Dec. 1, per NBA.com. Their offensive rating is 103.2 (26th), their defensive rating is 111.9 (29th) and their net rating is minus 8.8 (30th) in the same span, per NBA.com.

Clearly, some things need to change.

Over the last four seasons, the Lakers are 84-220, according to Basketball-Reference.com. Only the Philadelphia 76ers have been worse—and the 76ers are in a much better position than the Lakers are going forward.

Rebuilds don't always go as planned; injuries, player decisions and personal conflicts can get in the way. Sometimes draft picks don't pan out as most expect them to. It's a process, and while this team with a young core could certainly be in worse shape, it could also be doing much better. 

There are steps the front office can take between now and the end of the year to at least get to where fans can start dreaming about the postseason again. These are ranked sequentially, not by importance. It is a blueprint on how to speed up the rebuilding process.

1. Move on from the Past

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Zach Harper of FanRag explained the following to me about what draws free agents:

"I've always believed that quality of owner matters far more than market size of the city. Over the years, look at the Clippers vs. the Lakers. Look at the Knicks not being able to get LeBron James in 2010. Look at the Bulls in a post-Michael Jordan world. They weren't just picking the best players to sign with them because the ownership is/was a mess.

"Now that Dr. Jerry Buss is gone, the Lakers and Buss family are finding that out in an embarrassing fashion."

It's not about how big the name on the door is. It's not about how many banners are on the ceiling or how big the metro area is. NBA stars play for two things: money and rings.

And the elite players are getting paid wherever they go, so it's just about the rings.

Players aren't coming to the Purple and Gold if they don't feel they have a chance to win, no matter what their legacy is. Who is directing things now is what matters.

The Lakers' biggest struggle has been recognizing that fact, and that their future matters more than their past. That makes signing Magic Johnson inexplicable. A Lakers press release explained Johnson's new responsibilities:

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Johnson's duties will include, but not be limited to, advising ownership on all business and basketball matters, collaborating with coaches, evaluating and mentoring players, assessing future franchise needs, and helping ownership to determine the best path for growth and success. Johnson will spend time at Lakers offices in El Segundo and will report directly to Jeanie Buss.

"

Johnson subsequently said on ESPN's First Take what his priority would be:

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"First call I make if I'm in charge? Kobe Bryant. Because Kobe understands winning. He understands, also, these players. I would call: 'What role you want? ... If you've got a day, just give me that day.'

"I'll take that. Whatever time he has, I want him to come and be a part of it."

"

Kobe Bryant understood winning in the 2000s. I'm not sure he knows winning in 2017. Magic Johnson knew winning in the 1980s. That doesn't mean he understands it now. The game has evolved, and the Lakers need to evolve too, not cling to bygone heroes with antiquated notions.

Nothing else matters without that, because they won't be a free-agent destination.

The Lakers have already done the damage, but that doesn't mean they can't undo it by downplaying Johnson's role going forward instead of selling him as the savior of the franchise.

2. Set a Clear Direction with the Right Leader

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One thing Johnson is right about? The Lakers front office needs clarity as to who is calling the shots, as he told ESPN:

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"Last week someone asked me if I wanted to call the shots. I'd told them my role was as an adviser. Then he said, 'Do you want to call the shots?' And I said, 'I would love to call the shots.' But I know that I'm an adviser. Jim is the one calling the shots. I'm just an adviser. But I want to make sure that I have some type of input, and then he can decide how he wants to use that input.

"When I say calling the shots, it's more, 'Somebody has to be the final decision-maker.' I would love that to be me. Everybody has their input, and then somebody has to make the final call. Once we gather all the facts, I'd love to be the person making the final call."

"

Even in the press release, there’s the disconcerting piece about Johnson reporting directly to Jeanie Buss. So where does that leave President of Basketball Operations Jim Buss? What about GM Mitch Kupchak?

And why on earth would the general manager do all the legwork and then report to Magic, as he implied he would like things to happen.

While it's true someone needs to call the shots, I don’t think Magic is that someone. Why not the GM who is doing the work? And why not make that a forward-thinking, analytically minded GM who has a direction that complements the vision of Luke Walton?

The Lakers should spend the rest of the season probing about for a new GM that has established an eye for young talent and team building.

Troy Weaver was instrumental as an assistant GM with the Oklahoma City Thunder and allegedly was behind a lot of the moves that made OKC a contender, according to Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman. Travis Schlenk is an assistant GM with the Golden State Warriors who already has a relationship with Walton—not to mention over 16 years of front-office experience.

There are better options than Magic to set the future for the vision of the team. The Lakers would be well served to find that person. Making a move is going to be hard midseason, but indicating they’re heading in that direction could be a big help when it comes to grabbing the interest of free agents.  

3. Trade Veterans for Defense and Picks

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Lou Williams has been arguably the NBA's best sixth man this season, scoring almost 300 more points off the bench than anyone in the league.

Nick Young has had easily his best season ever. He has 3.3 win shares, which is already a career high. His 4.9 percent turnover percentage is best in the NBA. His 60.1 true shooting percentage is 6.6 percentage points over his career high. And he’s playing respectable defense.

While both guys are doing positive things, they’re not going to be part of the Lakers’ future. Young is not young; he’s 31. Williams is 30.

They will also never have more trade value than they do right now. Williams could bring back a first-round pick. Young might not have that much cache, but maybe he could get a quality wing defender—something the Lakers are in dire need of.

Trading them also aids the Lakers’ quest to keep their top-three protected pick this season—lottery permitting—rather than giving it to Philadelphia, per RealGM.com.

Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype reported that either or both players could be moved before the trade deadline. Both would be preferable, especially if it makes the Lakers worse now but better in the future. 

While it would be ideal if they could also find a taker for Timofey Mozgov's contract (four years, $64 million per Spotrac.com), that's not realistic. The same goes for Luol Deng (four years, $72 million), although, you have the benefit of veteran leadership with Deng whereas Mozgov has never really been mentioned as a leader.

4. Take an Honest Assessment of the Core

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There are several teams—Denver Nuggets, Minnesota Timberwolves, Philadelphia 76ers, Milwaukee Bucks and the Lakers—counting on their young cores to grow. But the Nuggets have Nikola Jokic, the Wolves have Karl-Anthony Towns, the 76ers have Joel Embiid and the Bucks have Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Who's the Lakers' franchise player today?

There are 92 players this year with no more than three years of experience who have played at least 500 minutes. Here are how the Lakers' youngsters stack up with the rest of the league, based on player efficiency rating:

Rank	Player	Age	MP	PER
18	Larry Nance Jr.	24	869	15.8
19	Julius Randle	22	1,412	15.6
21	Tarik Black	25	749	15.4
24	D'Angelo Russell	20	1,112	15.3
36	Jordan Clarkson	24	1,587	13.3
89	Brandon Ingram	19	1,604	7.2

There are several alarms that should go off here. First, they don’t have anyone in the top 17, much less the top 10. Second, based on this, none of the youngsters look like future franchise players. Perhaps Julius Randle or D’Angelo Russell have some chance at being All-Stars someday, but even that seems like a stretch.

Most disconcerting of all, Brandon Ingram is looking like his chances of being a bust are better than being a star.

Now, it’s true that PER is never the final say. Nor is Ingram’s first half of his rookie season indicative of what his entire career will be. However, his minus-0.5 win shares tie him for 33rd-worst by any rookie in history.

There aren’t many players taken as high as him in the draft (say top-five for discussion's sake) who had negative win shares and went on to have positive win shares. Guys like Adam Morrison, Michael Olowakandi and Marcus Fizer don't don’t inspire confidence. Allan Houston, Jamal Crawford and Lindsay Hunter, all taken a bit later, carved out decent livings for themselves. But none of them were franchise players or even close. 

Turning to the numbers at SynergySportsTech.com, Ingram is in the 12th percentile in scoring, with just .783 points per possession. He's a decent spot up shooter, though, landing in the 51st percentile. 

But he's just awful as the ball-handler in the pick-and-roll. He shies away from contact when he gets into the lane and settles for pull-up mid-range shots which tend to miss. When he does go all the way to the rim, he doesn't finish through contact and misses those too. As a result, he's in just the 8th percentile. Similarly, he's just in the 22nd percentile on isolation plays.  

And this is where the concern is: Can Ingram ever be a high-level shot creator? If not, his ceiling is just a knock-down spot-up shooter with a ceiling of Houston or Hunter. While that wouldn't be a "bust", it would be a disappointment. 

Perhaps the Lakers would be wise to sell him while there is still some appeal, even if that trade is for a lower pick.

5. Get Multiple Shots at a Franchise Player

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The Lakers have been in the pick-selling business for a while. Now it’s time to get in the pick-buying business.

You have a better chance of getting a franchise player with the No. 1 pick, obviously, but megastars can come anywhere in the draft.

The 2011 draft offers an intriguing case study. The top five players in career win shares from that draft are all in this year’s All-Star Game, including Kyrie Irving (the first pick taken overall), Klay Thompson (the 11th pick), Kawhi Leonard (14th), Jimmy Butler (30th) and Isaiah Thomas (60th, the last pick overall).

Ingram, even if he does turn out to be a bust, was not a bad pick. You can only go by what you know, and you don’t know what the future holds for anyone. Randle, Russell and Ingram all went about where we expected them to go, and most teams would have taken them with the same slots.

Maybe Markelle Fultz goes to the Lakers and is the superstar everyone expects him to be. But maybe the Lakers don't get their ball drawn this year as the team with the top selection.

That's why L.A. needs to be acquiring as many picks as possible. The strength of this game is in the numbers as much as it is in the scouting.

The Sam Hinkie process might have gotten him run out of town in Philadephia, but it sure is looking like it works. The Lakers need to adopt that mentality. Any trades they make before the deadline in exchange for picks also have a secondary impact: They open up roster spots. 

The Lakers have shown potential for getting hits outside the lottery. Larry Nance Jr., Jordan Clarkson and Ivica Zubac have all been good examples of guys who have out-performed their draft slots.

What's more, using the rest of the season to cycle players in and out from L.A.'s D-League D-Fenders gives the chance to catch lightning in a bottle. And if that doesn't happen, hey, at least the Lakers lost a few more games with that top-three protected pick in mind.