The news just keeps flooding in for Los Angeles Lakers fans. After an extremely active free-agency period, the team announced that head coach Frank Vogel was signed to a contract extension on Friday.
Melissa Rohlin of Fox Sports provided the Lakers’ full press release on Vogel’s extension:
Although the Lakers got bounced in the first round of the playoffs this past season, it was a no-brainer to keep Vogel in the fold. Superstars Anthony Davis and LeBron James both missed extended stretches of the 2020-21 campaign, and L.A. did get bounced by the eventual West champion Phoenix Suns.
Even as the Lake Show slid down the standings, Vogel did the best with what he had, and he ultimately led the Lakers to a No. 1 ranking in defensive rating, as they allowed 106.8 points per game.
Vogel is going to get to show off every skill he has in making adjustments for this coming season, as GM Rob Pelinka has completely overhauled L.A.’s roster.
Among the new players the Lakers will welcome are Russell Westbrook, Carmelo Anthony, Trevor Ariza, Wayne Ellington, Kendrick Nunn, Malik Monk and Kent Bazemore. Veteran big man Dwight Howard is also returning after being part of the Purple and Gold’s 2020 NBA championship team.
Obviously, LeBron had to have signed off on keeping Vogel around, but the move to extend him suggests the organization as a whole believes Vogel is the right man to lead the team into the future even when The King inevitably retires.
As long as LBJ is playing, it’ll be a challenge if there’s this much roster turnover. Then again, it’s a task Vogel has been up to since joining the Lakers and coaching LeBron. With the arguable GOAT in the fold, too, every season is an all-in championship push, so reshuffling lineups and personnel is a good problem for Vogel to have in that context.
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