NBA insider: Lakers aren't 'all-in on winning now' with current roster

One week ago, a panel of ESPN insiders revealed their projected top finishers in the Eastern and Western conferences for the upcoming NBA season, and the Los Angeles Lakers were nowhere to be found. On Wednesday morning, ESPN's Tim Bontemps explained why the Lakers -- as currently constructed -- can't be considered "all-in" on competing for a title during the 2022-2023 campaign.
Bontemps and fellow ESPN scribe Kevin Pelton came out with the "NBA all-in tiers" on Wednesday, which broke the 30 teams into seven categories, ranging from "All-in on ... a championship this season" to "All-in on... nothing?" Los Angeles -- along with the Dallas Mavericks and Toronto Raptors -- fell into the latter tier.

"For as long as the Lakers hang on to their two future first-round picks, have Russell Westbrook on the roster and have LeBron James and (Anthony) Davis surrounded by a bunch of (mostly) young players -- almost all of whom are on minimum contracts -- they aren't all-in on winning now, especially after how much the Westbrook trade burned them last season," Bontemps wrote. "One could credibly argue this is the right path for the Lakers and that they can't afford to be all-in again. That puts the franchise in a strange position at the moment, especially as LeBron's 38th birthday approaches on Dec. 30."

In 2020, the Lakers broke their franchise-worst seven-year playoff drought during the first season of the Frank Vogel-era (along with Davis' first year with the club) when they won the NBA title in the "Bubble." Since then, it's been a steady decline in sucess.

During the 2020-2021 campaign when James was limited to a career-low 45 regular season games, the team went 42-30 and lost in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs. Last season, after acquiring Westbrook, Los Angeles finished 33-49 and failed to make the postseason.