The former NBA veteran has quite a strong opinion on the LA Lakers.
For head coaches, it’s a wonder the Los Angeles Lakers vacancy ever has any interest. Oftentimes, they become the scapegoat for the club’s shortcomings, even if they are rooted in a deeper problem. For the first time in a while, the Lakers made a positive move to equip first-year head coach JJ Redick with a stronger roster to compete with.
It isn’t only head coaches who receive this treatment, though. It’s a tough franchise for players to play in as well. There are constant expectations to compete for a title. Any player who doesn’t have a career year in making so happen, often receives criticism.
The club itself isn’t the best-run organization in the league, either. It is, however, one of the most history-rich franchises in all of sports altogether. With 17 titles, the Lakers have the second-most titles in league history.
The Lakers have had many notable players come in an out of the organization. Player movement runs rampant in the NBA, no matter the stature of any player. With LeBron James and Anthony Davis at the helm of the roster, the front office has exhausted all options to build a contending team around the duo.
Having captured a title in 2020, Los Angeles has been looking to achieve the feat since.
They acquired Patrick Beverley, a journeyman guard, at the start of the 2022/23 season, before trading him midway through.
Beverley recently claimed on his show that the Lakers fans decrease the value of their players by talking bad about them.
He said: “They talk so bad about their players that they actually decrease their value. So now, when a trade comes, ain’t nobody just giving you____. No one’s trying to help the Los Angeles Lakers,” Beverley claimed.
“We know you guys want this guy—he’s a second-rounder for every other team, but to the Lakers, he’s two first rounds. But when you have a fan base, a guy shoots bad, and they crush guys, they decrease their value.”
Beverley recently questioned the move to trade away D’Angelo Russell and acquire Dorian Finney-Smith.
With the Lakers holding championship expectations every season, they’ve got to point fingers when they run into shortcomings. Oftentimes, this comes to the detriment of players. It makes life harder for Los Angeles, too.
One clear example of how the Lakers, their fan base and front office alike, can ruin the reputation of a player is Russell Westbrook. The future Hall of Fame point guard and 2016 MVP landed with the club later in his career. He was fresh off impressive seasons with the Houston Rockets and Washington Wizards. However, it was clear he wasn’t a good fit alongside James.
Still, Los Angeles traded for Davis to form a “big three,” though it didn’t suit Westbrook, who was a shell of himself with the club. He then moved on to the LA Clippers, where he was successful in his role. Right now, he’s reinventing himself with the Denver Nuggets.
Given he’s closer to retirement than he is his prime back in the day, the discourse around Westbrook is awful. He’s a legendary point guard who was respected as such until he joined the Lakers. He was then made a laughingstock of the NBA.
Westbrook’s value fell far below what is should have been, and his Lakers stint is to thank for that, as Beverly alluded to.
Related Posts
