On Tuesday night against the Phoenix Suns, the Los Angeles Lakers were just one loss away from being knocked out of contention for a spot in the NBA’s play-in tournament.
Just prior to the start of the contest, Lakers color commentator Stu Lantz was heard on a hot mic asking the Suns to basically end what has been a season of misery for the Purple and Gold.
I agree with Stu Lantz on this. Put the Lakers out of our misery Suns. pic.twitter.com/xcHEslFPQs
— Gieson Cacho (@gcacho) April 6, 2022
Lantz probably summed up the feeling of many Lakers fans and perhaps some people within the organization.
It has been a precipitous free fall for a team that, less than two calendar years ago, had won the NBA championship.
Last summer, L.A. had traded for future Hall of Famer Russell Westbrook, leading many to think that it was on its way back to the NBA Finals.
But from the start, the 2021-22 season took on the look and feel of a cursed season.
Both LeBron James and Anthony Davis suffered multiple key injuries, while Westbrook’s play was up and down, leading to him becoming the team’s scapegoat.
The Lakers’ defense, which had been their calling card the past two years, was very porous, and their offense wasn’t much better.
The team was never able to get that far over .500, and now it will likely finish the schedule with at least 50 losses.
This will be the seventh time in the last nine seasons that the Lakers have missed the playoffs, and with a very important offseason coming up, there is currently little hope among their fan base that they will return to title contention next year.
