How to Fix the Lakers
The 2021-22 Lakers season was such a catastrophe for fans, some of the fandom’s plebeians might stage a boycott if Doc Rivers becomes the next head coach. The Russell Westbrook trade was the worst transaction in franchise history.
Frank Vogel was just given the boot (according to multiple reports), falling on the sword for a terrible roster ridden with injuries galore. He, however, was no saint starting DeAndre Jordan 21 times and Avery Bradley over Austin Reaves in must-win games. However, he was just the tip of the iceberg of problems in Lakerland.
We can complain about all of the issues from this season. Now, let’s be positive! Let’s dive into how the mighty Lakeshow can make a real comeback to prominence (unlike those fake comebacks we’ve seen all of this season). *cracks knuckles*
Ownership/Front Office: How to Nepotism
As we know, Jeanie Buss, Rob Pelinka, and the Rambii (Kurt and Linda) are the most influential people when it comes to basketball operations. Jeanie became the owner because her dad owned the team. Rob became the general manager because he was Kobe Bryant’s agent despite having zero front office experience and poor relationships with executives around the league.
Linda Rambis’ sister dated Dr. Jerry Buss and is great friends with Jeanie. Kurt Rambis played and coached for the Lakers despite having one of the worst coaching records in history and a disaster front office tenure for the New York Knicks.
All four got their jobs because of nepotism, not pedigree. Did they help deliver the 2020 championship? Of course, but why did this Laker team all of a sudden fail compared to previous seasons? Crappy roster construction due to terrible personnel moves and cheap ownership.
However, there is another side of the nepotism coin with two particular Buss brothers who are actually very good at what they do: Joey (CEO and VP of Research Analytics with the South Bay Lakers) and Jesse (Assistant General Manager and former scout).

When Magic Johnson was on First Take years ago doing his “I’m Not Gonna Be Here” tour, he said that the Buss brothers “wanted more power” within the organization. Given their track record with scouting and drafting, it makes perfect sense. They understand how to find talent as well as anyone.
In a fair world, they should have more power than Rob Pelinka and Kurt Rambis. But, them becoming more influential decision-makers is a decent compromise.
Coaching Staff: Call the Nurse, Not the Doc

Nick Nurse is a top five coach in the NBA. He is an elite defensive mind who experiments like Dr. Frankenstein. He throws out weird lineups that somehow fit and makes incredible in-game adjustments. The one caveat is the Klutch client would have to be traded for. The Lakers do not have a tradable first-round pick until 2027. They have two second-rounders in 2023 and one in each of 2024 and 2025.
Trades for coaches are incredibly rare. We haven’t seen it since Jason Kidd was traded from Brooklyn to Milwaukee for two second-round picks. If that’s what it takes to get Nurse, the Lakers should jump all over it. However, that also depends on Masai Ujiri, one of the shrewdest negotiators in the league.
If not Nurse, Quin Snyder would be an excellent plan B. Under Snyder, the Jazz have had defensive stalwarts led by Gordon Hayward and Rudy Gobert and an offensive juggernaut last season with Donovan Mitchell and Mike Conley. Snyder may not have championship pedigree like Nurse, but he’s very malleable and has made a team without a top-20 player one of the toughest teams in the league. The former Lakers’ assistant would be a great hire and wouldn’t cost a single draft pick.


Let’s discuss Doc Rivers, the king of blown 3-1 leads (and blew a 3-2 lead against the Lakers in the 2010 Finals with his team up 13 at one point in Game 7). Rivers is one of the better offensive minds in the game. He is also one of the most stubborn coaches who refuses to adjust in key moments, hence the blown leads.
Rivers has been a media darling for a long time due to his great quotes and character. But, he’s a politician and we all see his record has been lacking the last several years. He hasn’t made it to a conference finals since 2012 despite having Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, Kawhi Leonard, and Paul George on various teams.
Frank Vogel is a better coach than Doc Rivers and also Mike Brown, Steve Clifford, and especially Kurt freaking Rambis. Hiring any of them after dumping Vogel would be a step backwards.


Another name to mention is Michigan’s Juwan Howard, former college teammate of Rob Pelinka and Heat teammate of LeBron James. While Howard is the OG slap artist (sorry Will Smith), he had a very impressive season at Michigan leading a team on the bubble of the tournament to the Sweet Sixteen after an Elite Eight appearance as a 1-seed last year. Howard doesn’t have the track record as the other NBA candidates, but he is an interesting name to watch.

Lastly, while Alvin Gentry hasn’t been linked to the Lakers, the former Pelicans’ coach arguably utilized Anthony Davis better than anyone offensively. Gentry is one of the top offensive minds around. He would make at the very least an excellent assistant. I would still put Nurse and Snyder over him, but he is in the same tier as Howard for me.
Coaching Update:


If Brad Turner’s report remains true, Nick Nurse, Quin Snyder, and Juwan Howard look like long shots. Management’s handling of coaches is seeming like it may put off some candidates like Snyder. This is just another indictment of Rob, Jeanie, and the Rambii.
Steve Clifford and Terry Stotts are fine, but would be downgrades from Vogel, in my opinion.
Darvin Ham, former Lakers assistant, has been one of the top assistants around the league for years. He is probably due for a head coaching gig. Of the remaining candidates, he would be my top choice.
Russell Westbrook: Moving On

After an atrocious season where all-star status wasn’t remotely considered, I highly doubt Russell Westbrook declines his $47M player option to become an unrestricted free agent. If he opts in, the Lakers have to trade him for 2 reasons:
Fill out the rest of their rotation
Get players who make basketball sense next to LeBron James and Anthony Davis


In a vacuum, you easily take Malcolm Brogdon and Buddy Hield over Russell Westbrook. The former is the consummate combo guard who can do a little bit of everything: slashing, shooting off the dribble, pick-and-roll playmaking, and on-ball defending.
However, Brogdon struggles to stay healthy with only two seasons playing over 60 games in his 6-year career. He is also signed through 2025 when he’ll be 34 years old. These are also both reasons the Pacers might trade him for Westbrook’s expiring contract.
Buddy Hield has been linked to the Lakers since last offseason. We know what he is: one of the greatest shooters in NBA history either off the catch, dribble, or movement. He is a pretty bad defender, but his offense is so good he can overcome that.
As mentioned earlier, the Lakers could attach picks to sweeten the pot. It seems like the Pacers have no goals of contending. The Lakers may have to throw someone like Talen Horton-Tucker or Kendrick Nunn in there to sweeten the pot and take someone like TJ McConnell back in return. I wouldn’t do that, but I’d consider it.


The Hornets are interesting. They have two awesome guards in LaMelo Ball and Terry Rozier, but Russ is a Jordan Brand athlete. To me, it makes no on-court sense to do it. But, Miles Bridges is about to get paid and LaMelo Ball will soon follow.
Gordon Hayward is very much in the same boat as Brogdon. He is incredible when healthy, even better than Brogdon. He is also a playmaking wing who can hit 3s and defend his ass off, a perfect fit next to LeBron and AD. He just hasn’t stayed healthy since his tragic leg injury. He’s 32 with 2 years and $61M left on his deal after this season. Again, these are also reasons the Hornets may move him.
Charlotte could also attach Kelly Oubre, a talented athlete and versatile wing who sometimes does too much, or Mason Plumlee, a solid lob threat who’s just an average defender but also an atrocious free-throw shooter.
PJ Washington, who has a $5.8M team option for next season, could possibly be thrown in there alone with Hayward. The former lottery pick has shown to be a competent shooter (career 37% on 4 attempts per game) and an excellent finisher (60.6% from 2 this season). Washington could be in a Malik Monk type of situation where he fell out of the starting lineup and could use a change of scenery.
Offloading salary for an expiring contract to pay their franchise backbones in Bridges and Ball makes some sense. The ideal package would be Gordon Hayward and PJ Washington for Russell Westbrook and a future second (or two). I would give up the 2027 1st if push came to shove. Hayward and Washington are big wings the Lakers need, one of which can provide long-term sustainability.
I prefer the Hornets deal over the Pacers. Hayward is the best player in either package and the Lakers need 2-way wings. Again, it also depends on what the other teams’ demands are.
Summary
The Lakers have a lot to sort out this offseason, but they will be set up for success if they do the following:
Give more power to the Buss brothers
Hire Nick Nurse, Quin Snyder, Darvin Ham, or Alvin Gentry
Trade Russell Westbrook to either the Pacers or Hornets, getting players with high-ish reward (and possibly high risk) in return
Build a roster around two-way-compatibility
Even if LA does the first 3 things, they still need to fill out the rest of the roster with the taxpayer mid-level exception ($6.1M) and the bi-annual exception ($3.9M) along with veteran minimums.
They still have Kendrick Nunn and Talen Horton-Tucker (either of whom could be traded). Many Laker fans want Malik Monk back, but I don’t see that as a top priority. I would prefer someone like Donte Divincenzo or Thad Young, really solid 2-way players, for the taxpayer MLE. With that said, I would welcome Monk back depending on the roster make-up.
With THT, Nunn, Austin Reaves, Stanley Johnson, and Wenyan Gabriel, the Lakers have plenty of serviceable backups for next season. LAL needs to add legitimate starters and 1-2 rotation pieces. Maybe Nunn can start like he did for Miami, but they need 3 guys who can fit well next to LeBron and AD. One needs to be a guard who can score off the dribble (Nunn, Divincenzo, or Brogdon) and the other two need to be 2-way wings (Hayward, Washington, or Oubre).
The Lakers need to build their roster on size and versatility. That formula won them the 2020 title and Nick Nurse the 2019 title. Quin Snyder is familiar with Gordon Hayward and high IQ perimeter players with an athletic big. The front office needs to build their roster both based on how the players fit and their coach’s strengths, something they neglected last offseason.
At the end of the day, the Lakers can easily jump back into contention. If they navigate this correctly and stay healthy, they’ll be back. Ownership and the front office need to dig itself out of the hole it created. Unless that happens, it doesn't matter who coaches and if LeBron and AD are healthy. The moves on the margins will be the difference between a title and not.