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Last season’s LA Lakers went 6-5 in their first 11 games and ended up being named one of the worst teams in NBA history. The purple and gold franchise is starting an even more ignominious campaign this season, winning with a 2-9 record.
After losing to the LA Clippers for their ninth loss in 11 games, NBA Insider Bill Oram promptly declared:
“I covered the Lakers for nine years starting in 2013-14. That… was a lot of bad basketball. This is the worst Lakers team I’ve ever seen.”
The Oregonian sports columnist is saying a ton with this tweet. During the 2013-14 season, the Lakers started 4-7 and finished the season with a 27-55 record. The season after that was even more embarrassing as the team started 2-9 and exited the 2014-15 season with a 21-61 mark.
The worst of those years was definitely the 2015-16 LA Lakers, who still relied on the aging Kobe Bryant. They also had a 2-9 start and ended their humiliating campaign with a 17-65 mark.
If the 2022-23 LA Lakers are really the worst among the lot, then that’s saying something.
The biggest difference between those teams and this version of the LA Lakers are the names on the roster. Kobe Bryant was on his last legs and was supported by Pau Gasol and the aging Steve Nash during the 2013-14 season.
Gasol left while Nash retired after that season, leaving Bryant with Nick Young, Jordan Hill, Jeremy Lin, Carlos Boozer and then rookie Julius Randle. It was more of the same ragtag team in Bryant’s last season with the Lakers.
The 2021-22 and 2022-23 LA Lakers have had Anthony Davis, LeBron James and Anthony Davis. The two are former MVPs, while the third is expected to be the best in the NBA at some point. They started the season 2-9, the second-worst in the league and only half a game ahead of the Houston Rockets.
The worst part of it all is not the LA Lakers’ mediocrity but the spectacle that fans have to endure. There’s almost no way out of the hole that the team has dug itself in.
Disaster is staring at the LA Lakers right now
With LeBron James around, LA Nation kept their faith that somehow things would get better. If James’ injury is the same as the one he suffered in 2018, then the Lakers are officially a disaster. The Tinseltown squad missed that season’s playoffs as James played only 55 games.
Anthony Davis isn’t also giving Lakers fans a ton of confidence health-wise. He has already missed one game this season due to back tightness and continues to battle that nagging injury. If his back issues persist, there’s no way to go but down for Jeanie Buss’ team.
What started with so much hope this season is starting to give way to desperation. Yes, it’s only 11 games, but there’s no solution to the Lakers’ shooting woes.
Their shooting has improved a bit, but they’re still dead last in offensive rating. LA’s once-competitive defense has started to unravel over the last few games. If LeBron James and Anthony Davis are compromised, they can already kiss their season goodbye.
