Even with all the drama unfolding in places like Philadelphia and New York, the Los Angeles Lakers remain the talk of the NBA community.
The trio of LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Russell Westbrook has been dysfunctional so far and anybody who pays attention will notice just how had they are playing this season.
After Sunday night's loss to Miami, even 11-year veteran Avery Bradley felt compelled to call out the squad. Speaking to reporters, he detailed some of the issues he noticed with the Heat game and the season in general.
“I think the main thing was the intensity," said Bradley. "Just a little too late. We not only dug a hole for ourselves, but I think when we tried to match their intensity, the referees I would say they weren’t ready for our intensity, it was almost too late when we tried to raise our level of play."
“We are not learning from our mistakes and as a veteran team as a team that is looking to go far in the postseason, I feel like we have to correct our mistakes and learn from those. We just have to play better. It’s unfortunate, but tonight I liked our fight, but it was too late like I said.”
This season the Lakers have had trouble beating playoffs teams, but they've also struggled to defeat lower-seeded competition.
The fear and respect they once inspired seem to be a thing of the past.
“You are the Los Angeles Lakers, you have that on the front of your chest, that means a lot. That means maximum effort every night, that means winning your home games, unless a Golden State comes in or Arizona, a team that’s really good, you might lose a game at home,” said James Worthy on Spectrum SportsNet. “But you definitely beat the Indianas, the Oklahomas, the Houston Rockets. You demolish those teams when they come into your home. That’s not happening. To see the inconsistency it seems no sense of urgency. Nobody respects the Lakers like they used to, they’re not afraid of you anymore."
"By you continuing to lose you just give all teams, not just good teams but some subpar teams like Indiana, like Oklahoma, they come in here they feel like you’re disrespecting, you don’t play them a full 48 minutes and somehow they feel like they’re going to get back in the game. You don’t take care of the little things, you don’t box out, you don’t get back on transition defense all the things that have won 17 championships here it’s not obvious to us here.”
For months, analysts and fans have been hard at work trying to identify the cause of L.A.'s struggles. So far, nobody has been able to provide a conclusive answer. Whether it's health, age, or Russell Westbrook himself, the Purple and Gold have a lot to figure out if they want to turn things around.
This trade deadline, do not be surprised if the Lakers end up being among the league's biggest sellers. At this point, a major shake-up might be the only thing left to do.
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