The Los Angeles Lakers won their latest NBA championship in 2020, powered by their superstar duo of LeBron James and Anthony Davis. That was the first year disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, with the final games of the regular season and the playoffs taking place in the much-maligned bubble in Orlando. The Lakers were undeterred by the environment they were in though and capitalized to add another title to the franchise's long history.
Ever since they won, they have had their detractors among the fans and the media, claiming their achievement was less impressive because it was in the bubble and because they didn't face any really good opposition. The Lakers beat the upstart Miami Heat in the Finals that season but the Heat were missing key players and had been the 5th seed, to begin with.
This only added to the noise and now former All-Star Gilbert Arenas has become the latest person to play down the Lakers' win for this reason. He blasted coach Frank Vogel on his No Chill With Gilbert Arenas podcast, criticizing his lineups and saying that the Lakers shouldn't have even dropped a game against the Heat.
“When he won the championship, I said it. I give him, what a ‘C’? A ‘C’ at best, right? Because you were supposed to win that championship. Like there was no way you could lose that championship. Like you couldn’t lose! So I’m judging you on how you actually played the game,” explained Arenas.
“How did you play? You were playing against Miami, like let’s just be honest here, Miami Jimmy Butler–Top 20 player that year. Bam? Maybe he breaks 50. Everyone else? Not even in the hundred, right? They’re not below one hundred. Well, if your matchup against those guys, is guys who’s not even in the 300s, then those guys have an advantage over you.
"So, those 2 guards–you got Duncan, and you know Herro, as a freshman, as a rookie, they’re outscoring you by like 30 something between those 2 against your guards. Someone has to make that up–that makes more pressure on LeBron and AD. So, you drop 2 games to a team that you should’ve 4-Oed by 20, 10 at the worst. So, it was like your lineups are horrible. You do not know what matches–it’s like getting dressed in the dark. You know that’s how he pulls his lineups."
Frank Vogel is currently under scrutiny after the Lakers have failed to impress in the first half of the 2021-22 regular season. They are currently 8th in the Western Conference with a very poor 23-24 record and will continue to be labeled as underachievers if they cannot find a way to string some wins together soon.
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