Although the Lakers have made a large number of reinforcements after the end of last season, Vogel has basically denied the offseason signings so far. Because now Vogel is downsizing the rotation, and a lot of the players who are playing now are not players who are traded offseason. In the game against the Warriors, Vogel only used a nine-man rotation, and Howard was still abandoned. In fact, it is not only Howard who has been abandoned, but the shooter Ellington introduced by the Lakers after the end of last season has also been abandoned by head coach Vogel in recent games.
Ellington has shot 39.2 percent from three-point range this season, and his three-point shooting percentage is among the best in the Lakers, making him a true shooter in the strict sense of the word. But now at the Lakers he has completely lost playing time. Because Ellington's defensive pace on the court was slow, Vogel didn't trust him, even though his three-point shooting percentage was very high.
Vogel is also a more defensively focused head coach, so he trusts players like Stanley Johnson, even if his three-point shooting percentage isn't that high. Even players like Tucker will get his reuse. Vogel firmly believes that the Lakers' offense has no problem with James and Davis, so he will pay more attention to defense in the configuration of other lineups. If Vogel has stuck to his philosophy, there are a lot of players this season who could leave the Lakers after the end of the season.
Ellington is likely to leave the Lakers after the end of the season, because Ellington is now 34 years old, and his footsteps on the defensive end are not as good as before. Since the Lakers don't need his offense, it basically doesn't make much sense for him to stay with the Lakers.
In fact, Ellington still has his role, at least he can play a role in opening up space on the field. On the defensive end, although the pace is slow, the Lakers can rely on their team defense to help Ellington to assist in the defense. What the Lakers lack the most is space today, so they need players like Ellington to give the team space on the court.
The Lakers' current starting configuration includes Westbrook and Stanley Johnson, both of whom do not have the role of pulling space apart. Vogel may wish to expand his rotation more during the regular season, do not use a few people frequently, only then the Lakers may find a solution to the problem, Vogel is still too conservative in the use of people.