It didn’t take the Los Angeles Lakers lengthy this season to point out those that they weren’t a championship contender, however former head coach Frank Vogel could have accepted that unlucky reality lengthy earlier than anybody else.
Throughout an look on the “Locked on Lakers” podcast this week, Invoice Oram of The Athletic recalled some of the fascinating components from his latest unique interview with Vogel. He stated he requested Vogel when the coach knew the Lakers could be in bother, and Vogel stated there have been indicators earlier than the season even started.
“I bear in mind how I requested him this query. I stated, ‘When did you first decide up on that this was not going to be as easy crusing as you thought? What was the primary domino of all of the issues to go improper?’ He went again to the preseason,” Oram recalled. “He stated when (Russell Westbrook) and (Anthony Davis) performed, earlier than LeBron ever performed, it didn’t look good. That’s earlier than they misplaced a single recreation within the common season. Very telling, very damning, and I feel that displays actually poorly on the decision-makers.”
Vogel instructed Oram in that interview that he was very involved when the Lakers have been “getting killed within the preseason.” He stated individuals tend to dismiss these meaningless exhibition video games, however he nonetheless felt the poor chemistry was an ominous signal.
The Lakers had the oldest roster by common age within the NBA this season. Nearly everybody anticipated that to be a problem for them, and it was. No coach would have been in a position to deal with the workforce the Lakers put collectively, which is why Charles Barkley and others have blasted them for utilizing Vogel as a scapegoat.
If Vogel knew the Lakers had severe points earlier than the season even started, he can also have recognized he wouldn’t be their coach for much longer.
