This article is a translation of ESPN reporter Bobby Marks and does not represent the views of translators and platforms.
After a disastrous season, the Lakers missed the playoffs for the second time in the LeBron James era, and the Lakers management made the decision to change almost immediately.
Frank Vogel, the head coach who led the Lakers to a championship 18 months ago, is out of class. The Lakers are now looking for someone who will be the team's fifth head coach in nearly 10 seasons. The last head coach to coach the Lakers into his fourth season was Phil Jackson, whose second stint with the Lakers ended in 2010-11.
The future head coach will certainly bring a whole new perspective to the Lakers, but there's no denying that the future head coach will also be in the same predicament as when Vogel left. The Lakers have just finished their worst season since 2016-17, with LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook on $130 million contracts, and in this year's offseason, the Lakers have little room to improve the roster by signing free agents, drafts and trades.
Current lineup
Current squad status: Whether it is a championship or a failure depends on health
Last year's offseason, the Lakers acquired Westbrook through a trade, hoping that he could become the third big man next to James and Davis, and then signed several old future assistant big threes with a basic salary.
However, this deal had a counterproductive effect (we worded it politely). And the free agent market missed the opportunity, the Lakers can only go into the offseason with more problems. The answer they need starts with finding a new manager.
The 2019-20 championship could have brought more job security and rights to Vogel. However, after Westbrook's experiment failed, Vogel left the class first. Even, injuries to James and Davis forced him to use 39 different starting lineups for the 2021-22 season. (The figure in the original is 39, and the other news is 41.) James: 41 starts in 82 regular season games)
The situation the next head coach will face is really not ideal: most of the players in the squad have not yet signed a contract for next season; James' contract is about to enter its final year; and Davis, who has proven himself to be one of the most vulnerable players in the NBA over the past two seasons (in fact, for a longer period of time, dating back to his time with the New Orleans Pelicans). Even in the unlikely event that the Lakers could send Davis out in deal negotiations, his deal value is now at an all-time low.
The Lakers landed in the lottery section of the draft, but their draft picks belonged to the Pelicans or Grizzlies. They don't have second-round draft picks or the ability to sign free agents over $6.3 million.
There's also the problem that when the training camp of the new season starts, Westbrook may not necessarily be on the Lakers' roster.
By 2023, when Westbrook's $47.1 million contract expires, the Lakers' financial position could improve (assuming the Lakers didn't trade him before then). But if James renews his contract, James, Davis and Horton Tucker will take up another $100 million salary space for the Lakers.
The Lakers' roster base is too much uncertainty, and they rely more on the health of the players. Before Davis was injured last December, the Lakers had a record of 16-13, and were still in the top six in the West. But after that, the Lakers' record in the NBA was fifth in the number. Both James and Davis have missed a lot of important games.
The future of Westbrook
Russell Westbrook seems to have to blame the Lakers' failure this season.
This can only be the result when a team trades multiple players who have contributed to the championship (Kyle Kuzma and Pop) and the player who gets the trade doesn't perform well. For the Lakers, this transaction, if not completely locked in the possibility of the Lakers to improve the lineup, must also greatly weaken the flexibility of the team to improve the lineup.
Although Westbrook averaged 18.3 points, 7.5 rebounds and 7.1 assists per game this season, he has not been able to become the role that can help the Lakers win. Of all the players who have made more than 300 jump shots this season, Westbrook is second-to-last with 41.6 percent effective shooting percentage (Knicks' Julius Randle is in first-to-last). Westbrook has averaged 75.5 touches per game this season, the lowest since the 2013-14 season.
Earlier this season, Westbrook had said: "My role on the pitch and what I need to do changes every night, so I'm playing while trying to figure out how I can help my team." ”
According to Second Spectrum, Westbrook has averaged 37.4 direct touches (i.e. touches that directly form shots, assists, fouls or missteps) this season. It's also The lowest since the 2013-14 season, well below last season's 53.3 attempts per game.
Let's look at the free agents the Lakers signed last year: Rondo, Bazemore, Bradley, Jordan Jr., Ariza and Wayne Ellington. When they play, Westbrook's discomfort on the pitch is further amplified, and he hardly contributes much on the pitch.
Westbrook may still have a role for the Lakers next season, but his $47.1 million salary (the league's highest) doesn't match his on-court performance. What happens next? While Westbrook has earned $292 million in his career, it's almost certain he'll execute the player option by June 29.
Based on this, the Lakers need to seriously consider the following four issues:
1. Is it possible to improve the lineup by trading Westbrook?
2. Is it possible to cut Westbrook before the start of the new season and then pay off $47.1 million over three years? (Related Interpretation: Extended Terms of Layoffs and Buyouts)
3. Can I reach a buyout with Wei Shao?
4. Can the next manager use Westbrook in a different way?
To trade Westbrook, the Lakers must add enough draft picks to the trade, and the earliest draft pick they can trade is the 2027 first-round pick.
We're sure to hear rocket guard John Wall's name in the deal talks, but the question is whether the Lakers are willing to add extra draft picks?
They will certainly seek to exchange Westbrook's $47.1 million contract for multiple players, which is how the Wizards sent Westbrook to the Lakers last August. But now, that doesn't seem to work, unless teams like the Knicks really want to part ways with Kemba Walker, Evan Fournier and Alec Burks.
If the Lakers want to lay off or buy out Wei Shao directly, then the extended clause can help the Lakers free up salary space. Whether it's a buyout or a layoff, the Lakers can split $47.1 million equally into the salary space for the next three seasons. Moreover, the Lakers can get a full-time middle-class exception of $10.3 million and a biennial exception of $4 million. It would also bring the Lakers' overall salary below the luxury tax line, saving them a fortune. But on the downside, the Lakers will have $15.7 million in salary space to be occupied in both the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons, which will reduce their flexibility in the future.
What happens if the deal doesn't materialize, or if either party doesn't accept the buyout? Then we have to look forward to the Lakers' fifth head coach in nearly a decade to see if he can use Westbrook in a different way. Otherwise, you'll only see Wei Shao, who is exactly the same as last season.
Lakers General Manager: Pelinka
Although the Lakers had sent head coach Vogel out of the classroom just after the end of the season, Perrinka, vice president and general manager of the Lakers' basketball business, did not seem to be affected and was able to stay in office. After all, it was Pelinka who built the roster in the 2019 offseason and eventually won the NBA championship in 2020.
However, this offseason is different.
The Lakers don't have the $34 million salary space to build a roster around James and Davis like they did in 2019. Instead, the Lakers entered the offseason this time, and in addition to the only 8 players left on the big list, only one veteran base salary and $6.3 million middle-class exception were available.
(At the end of the season, there are only 8 players left in the Lakers roster: Westbrook, Nunn, Reeves, Tucker, James, Johnson, Davis and Gabriel))
For the Lakers to perform better than last season, they must avoid signing veterans who have already worked with or are at the end of their careers. The approach proved fatal last season as the Lakers brought back the once-familiar Rondo, Bazemore, Bradley, Ariza, Howard and Ellington, who didn't fare well in the halftime offense and defense.
According to Second Spectrum, the Lakers' halftime average pace ranks at the bottom of the league. In half-court offense, they spend 70 percent of their time walking or standing still, the highest number in the NBA.
The Lakers' most influential players in the last offseason were a losing draft (Austin Reeves) and two former lotto draft players (Stanley Johnson and Malik Munch) who were abandoned by the original team. Munch has far outperformed his $1.8 million contract this season, but the Only contract the Lakers can offer him is a $6.3 million mid-class exception. Fortunately, Reeves' contract is not guaranteed, and the Lakers have team options on Johnson.
(Key stats in the table: Westbrook: about 47.1 million, player options; James: about 44.47 million; Davis: about 37.98 million; Horton Tucker: 10.26 million; Nunn: 5.25 million, player options; Johnson: about 2.35 million, team options; Gabriel: about 1.88 million, team options; Reeves: about 1.56 million.) Guaranteed salary: approximately $145 million; Unsecured salary: approximately $5.8 million; Free Agent: Approximately 15.9 million; Total salary: Approximately $150.8 million; 2022-23 NBA salary cap: $122 million; 2022-23 luxury tax line: $147 million)
Lakers lineup requirements:
1. Starting point guard, starting point guard and starting big forward
2. Substitution of each position
Key Dates:
1. June 22: Kendrick Nunn has $5.3 million in player options, and he must decide whether to execute player options before this day. Nunn did not play this season because of a knee injury. If Nunn refuses to execute the player option, his next contract is likely to be $3 million less than his income with the Lakers next season.
2. June 29: Westbrook has a $47.1 million player selection that he must make before that day.
June 29: The team options for Johnson ($2.4 million) and Gabriel ($1.9 million), the Lakers must make a choice by this day.
4. Aug. 4: Circle the day on your calendar, as james can sign a two-year, $97.1 million contract extension ($46.7 million in the first year, $50.4 million in the second year). James, who has not previously said he wants to play for other teams, said after losing 102-105 to the Clippers on Feb. 26: "The Lakers are the team I want to play for." I'm here, I'm going to stay here. As long as I can play, I will be with the Purple and Gold Army. "He needs to complete the renewal by June 30, 2023, or he will become an unrestricted free agent in 2023.
Draft Picks:
The Lakers did not have the draft picks for the draft because they gave the Pelicans their first-round deal to the Pelicans during a deal to get Davis in 2019. In order to clear the salary space, the Lakers traded the second-round draft picks to each other in the deal with the Wizards.
By Bobby Marks
Compiler: Former lord of the city