Are the 2013 Lakers the biggest failures of all-time?

[Artillery]

I think the Lakers wouldn't have made the playoffs if it wasn't for the unfair officiating.

The basketball gods punished LA for undeservedly making the playoffs by injuring Kobe. Stern tried pulling a fast one on 'em and they were displeased. The multiple injuries that have happened to LA since then is proof of this.

[Artillery]

I think the Lakers would've had a better record if they were not riddled with injuries. People say Kobe and Dwight played most games, but you have to account they do not play in the Eastern conference, where teams like the Bucks make the playoffs and in the west the Jazz don't. Also you have to account their backcourt key players were often injured, Nash and Blake, and that position is very important, as important as center. Also people keep forgetting that Gasol is a very important key player, more than Dwight, in that team and he was out for a lot of games. Plus even Dwight was coming of a back surgery, people (Stans) think coming of a back surgery is easy? Heck MCgrady lost his superstar career due to back injuries. And the coup de tat...they go and lose Kobe.

Awful excuse. If you build an old team and play those guys heavy minutes, don't be surprised if they get injured. The Lakers were a badly put together team - awful defensively, decrepit/unathletic backcourt, over-reliant on threes, no bench, turnover-prone.

MISSED REGULAR SEASON GAMES 2012-13

LAKERS:
Dwight Howard -- 06
Pau Gasol -- 33
Kobe Bryant -- 04
Steve Nash -- 32
TOTAL FOR LAKERS BIG FOUR = 75
LAL REGULAR SEASON RECORD = 45-37

SPURS:
Manu Ginobili = 22
Tony Parker = 16
Tim Duncan = 13
Kawhi Leonard = 24
TOTAL FOR SPURS BIG FOUR = 75
SAS REGULAR SEASON RECORD = 58-24

[AintNoSunshine]

[oh the horror]

Captain Hindsight over here.

You can say that now, but NOONE was saying that when the Lakers acquired all of their all-stars.

Actually one of the main things discussed was the high risk for injuries with a team this old.


It is what it is.

[oh the horror]

Awful excuse. If you build an old team and play those guys heavy minutes, don't be surprised if they get injured. The Lakers were a badly put together team - awful defensively, decrepit/unathletic backcourt, over-reliant on threes, no bench, turnover-prone.

MISSED REGULAR SEASON GAMES 2012-13

LAKERS:
Dwight Howard -- 06
Pau Gasol -- 33
Kobe Bryant -- 04
Steve Nash -- 32
TOTAL FOR LAKERS BIG FOUR = 75
LAL REGULAR SEASON RECORD = 45-37

SPURS:
Manu Ginobili = 22
Tony Parker = 16
Tim Duncan = 13
Kawhi Leonard = 24
TOTAL FOR SPURS BIG FOUR = 75
SAS REGULAR SEASON RECORD = 58-24

Aside from the rest of the BS you typed there, outside of each player you mentioned on each team, name their remaining players?

Lakers are far more reliant on their "stars" and extremely top heavy.

San Antonio has ALWAYS found solid role players along the years.


These excuses are fact. Now it's not the only reason they crashed and burned but it's there.

[Shaquille O'Neal]

Awful excuse. If you build an old team and play those guys heavy minutes, don't be surprised if they get injured. The Lakers were a badly put together team - awful defensively, decrepit/unathletic backcourt, over-reliant on threes, no bench, turnover-prone.

MISSED REGULAR SEASON GAMES 2012-13

LAKERS:
Dwight Howard -- 06
Pau Gasol -- 33
Kobe Bryant -- 04
Steve Nash -- 32
TOTAL FOR LAKERS BIG FOUR = 75
LAL REGULAR SEASON RECORD = 45-37

SPURS:
Manu Ginobili = 22
Tony Parker = 16
Tim Duncan = 13
Kawhi Leonard = 24
TOTAL FOR SPURS BIG FOUR = 75
SAS REGULAR SEASON RECORD = 58-24

/thread.

[Artillery]

Lakers are far more reliant on their "stars" and extremely top heavy.

The top four Lakers average 70 ppg. The top four Spurs average 60 ppg. It's even worse for SA since their best two offensive players(Parker/Duncan) missed a combined 29 games while the Lakers best two offensive players(Kobe/Dwight) only missed 10 games.

San Antonio has ALWAYS found solid role players along the years.

LA had a 100 million in salary. It's their own fault for not using any of it to acquire a decent bench.

These excuses are fact. Now it's not the only reason they crashed and burned but it's there.

The Lakers were never good even when their Big Four was on the court. That unit's record was 8-14. In those 22 games, they only beat one Top 6 NBA team (OKC in LA) while losing to 5 other Top 6 [Top 6 = MIA; OKC; SAS; DEN; MEM; LAC] squads.

[Shaquille O'Neal]

Aside from the rest of the BS you typed there, outside of each player you mentioned on each team, name their remaining players?

Lakers are far more reliant on their "stars" and extremely top heavy.

Whose fault is that again? So the Spurs had a better system and now it's a bad thing?

[Nero Tulip]

it would be worse if the lakeshow didn't make the playoffs. either way it goes the championship cruise sinked.

The thing is, they really shouldn't have made the playoffs. The last third of the season is the most bullshit I've ever seen in any sport.

[Crafty]

MISSED REGULAR SEASON GAMES 2012-13

LAKERS:
Dwight Howard -- 06
Pau Gasol -- 33
Kobe Bryant -- 04
Steve Nash -- 32
TOTAL FOR LAKERS BIG FOUR = 75
LAL REGULAR SEASON RECORD = 45-37

SPURS:
Manu Ginobili = 22
Tony Parker = 16
Tim Duncan = 13
Kawhi Leonard = 24
TOTAL FOR SPURS BIG FOUR = 75
SAS REGULAR SEASON RECORD = 58-24

/thread

[blacknapalm]

/thread

ya, let's ignore depth or coaching. spurs have been slowly moving away from manu, duncan, parker but most of them pick up for the others when needed.

howard may have only missed six games but you're a fool, if you think he was all the way back even until now. lakers salary was backloaded. while not a bad point it doesn't tell the whole story.

ya, kobe put a strain on the salary cap, but dwight only just recently back into form and nash being at the end of his road really plays a part. they had a crap bench to begin with so adding those two guys just exasperated it. i never liked meeks...too streaky. i liked 'lock and hopefully they keep him around finally.

3 point shooting is still a major issue. blake has a herky jerky shot and isn't consistent and of course, he goes down too. LA wouldn't have won this series even with everyone healthy. maybe if everyone was a year younger but it wasn't happening this time around. even with kobe, it was probably a 5 game series.

[Crafty]

ya, let's ignore depth or coaching. spurs have been slowly moving away from manu, duncan, parker but most of them pick up for the others when needed.

howard may have only missed six games but you're a fool, if you think he was all the way back even until now. lakers salary was backloaded. while not a bad point it doesn't tell the whole story.

ya, kobe put a strain on the salary cap, but dwight only just recently back into form and nash being at the end of his road really plays a part. they had a crap bench to begin with so adding those two guys just exasperated it. i never liked meeks...too streaky. i liked 'lock and hopefully they keep him around finally.

3 point shooting is still a major issue. blake has a herky jerky shot and isn't consistent and of course, he goes down too. LA wouldn't have won this series even with everyone healthy. maybe if everyone was a year younger but it wasn't happening this time around. even with kobe, it was probably a 5 game series.

The problem with the Lakers is Nash and the bench.
Nash is a liability on defense, he practically invites drives, and Kobe having the worst off ball defense I've ever seen doesn't help.
The bench is poor, in quality and quantity, whose fault is it? Salary, get Kobe just receiving 15-18mil and you have more than enough to sign FA. Good FA.

And yes, let's ignore coaching, that's what d'antoni has been doing

[blacknapalm]

The problem with the Lakers is Nash and the bench.
Nash is a liability on defense, he practically invites drives, and Kobe having the worst off ball defense I've ever seen doesn't help.
The bench is poor, in quality and quantity, whose fault is it? Salary, get Kobe just receiving 15-18mil and you have more than enough to sign FA. Good FA.

And yes, let's ignore coaching, that's what d'antoni has been doing

nash has always been a liability on D but he'll always be a better option than blake, period. add in no training camp and little practice with a bad coach. now add in recovering injuries to their best two players and another on their already weak bench? this season just wasn't meant to be. with the luxury tax looming, they didn't really have much wiggle room. a good FA? might have saved them a few games but this team was too injury plagued and did not gel enough to get past the first round.

on paper? sure, a huge disappointment but let's not forget all the injuries that occur-ed all season long. i'm mostly just disagreeing w/ the notion they're the biggest failure in history. there has been plenty of similarily talented teams that didn't face the same injury issues.

[Bandito]

Awful excuse. If you build an old team and play those guys heavy minutes, don't be surprised if they get injured. The Lakers were a badly put together team - awful defensively, decrepit/unathletic backcourt, over-reliant on threes, no bench, turnover-prone.

MISSED REGULAR SEASON GAMES 2012-13

LAKERS:
Dwight Howard -- 06
Pau Gasol -- 33
Kobe Bryant -- 04
Steve Nash -- 32
TOTAL FOR LAKERS BIG FOUR = 75
LAL REGULAR SEASON RECORD = 45-37

SPURS:
Manu Ginobili = 22
Tony Parker = 16
Tim Duncan = 13
Kawhi Leonard = 24
TOTAL FOR SPURS BIG FOUR = 75
SAS REGULAR SEASON RECORD = 58-24

You got a nice point there. But opposite to the Spurs this Lakers team was built last season. There is a saying; "Rome wasn't built on a day". Not even the Heat with all their top talent won their first year, it takes time.

Also you have to see while Dwight didn't miss a lot of games he did play slower and less athletically than last year. Also one of their main offense, Gasol missed a lot of games in 33 like you said.

But like you said, this team was built wrong. They should've address their main weaknesses, the perimeter defense (backcourt) and the bench (backcourt too).

[Nevaeh]

You can't fail if you never get a chance. No team in history could withstand the type of injuries the Lakers saw this season.

Tell that to the teams that should have actually been in the Playoffs, instead of the Lakers.