“He knows what he’s doing, he’s won a championship” - Richard Jefferson defends Frank Vogel, says the roster is struggling despite having four NBA 75 players

Frank Vogel and his Los Angeles Lakers have had a relatively disappointing season. They currently stand in ninth place in the Western Conference with 24 wins to 27 losses. On a three-game losing streak, many are wondering what the problem is in L.A. As a result, coach Vogel has recently caught some flack regarding his leadership abilities.

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Frank Vogel and his future with Los Angeles

In an episode of ‘NBA Today’, the crew discusses which decisions they would make in Los Angeles if they were coaching the team. Amongst the conversations, Richard Jefferson defends Frank Vogel in explaining:

“He knows what he’s doing, he’s won a championship.”

Los Angeles Lakers head coach Frank Vogel has been coaching L.A. since 2019, leading them into their 17th NBA Championship. Prior to this, he had coached for the Orlando Magic between 2016 and 2018, and the Indiana Pacers from 2011 to 2016, where he started his career. Prior to these years, he served as an assistant coach of the Pacers, 76ers, and the Celtics.

In his first year of coaching for L.A., Frank Vogel and his squad finished with 52 wins and 19 losses (.732), sealing a victory in the NBA Championship. The following year (2020-21), he and the Lakers finished with 42 wins to 30 losses (.583), losing in the first round of the playoffs. Many assumed the Lakers were going to come out swinging this year after LeBron got knocked out of the playoffs so early and Los Angeles committed to their super squad.

Rumors about Frank Vogel losing his position started weightless, but gained traction after Magic Johnson sent out a tweet indicating a potential change in the future.

Magic Johnson, the father of “Showtime” basketball, and Lakers legend is the former president of basketball operations of the Los Angeles Lakers. After winning championships in both high school and college, Magic was selected first overall in the 1979 NBA draft by L.A. In the 905 NBA games played over his career, Johnson gathered 17,707 points, 6,559 rebounds, and 10,141 assists. These numbers translate to averages of 19.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 11.2 assists per game. Magic recorded each point in a yellow and purple jersey, having only ever played for the Lakers. He is often regarded as the best point guard of all time.

Los Angeles’ difficulties seem to lie in their battles with injuries, COVID protocols, and an inability to gain chemistry flowing on the floor. Prior to the season's start, much of the narrative was immediate playoff contention and showtime basketball highlights. It has in fact been the opposite.

In committing to big name players such as 10x NBA All-Star Carmelo Anthony, 9x NBA All-Star Russell Westbrook, and eight-time All-Star Dwight Howard, the Los Angeles Lakers had to sacrifice a lot. Trading away many key players for their future development, they left their future runs in the hands of a small number of players.

On August 6th 2021, the Frank Vogel signed new contracts with players Carmelo Anthony, Russell Westbrook, Kent Bazemore, Talen-Horton Tucker, Malik Monk, Kendrick Nunn, Trevor Ariza, Wayne Ellington and Dwight Howard. With such a large list of great names added to accent LeBron James and Anthony Davis, one would wonder how the Los Angeles Lakers are managing to struggle this season.

With a disappointing season thus far, Lakers fans everywhere hope the team can gather enough chemistry to make it into the playoffs. Having such a large amount of veterans with their shared basketball IQ will help the team in playoff situations. They arguably still hold the potential to be a threat in the playoffs if they manage to shape up. If coach Frank Vogel can influence another playoff run, the rumours of him being traded will likely silence.