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Los Angeles Lakers have a massive disadvantage for success

By Jason Reed

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 05: LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers looks on during a timeout in the first half of the game against the Los Angeles Clippers at Staples Center on April 05, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Yong Teck Lim/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 05: LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers looks on during a timeout in the first half of the game against the Los Angeles Clippers at Staples Center on April 05, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Yong Teck Lim/Getty Images) /
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The Los Angeles Lakers have not made the postseason the last six seasons and quite literally became a laughing stock after the 2018 season.

The Los Angeles Lakers‘ playoff drought extended to six years this offseason after the team fell short despite signing LeBron James last summer.

The team peaked on Christmas Day and quite frankly it has been a downhill spiral for the entire organization ever since. LeBron got hurt, as did Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram and even Kyle Kuzma, and the Lakers sputtered to the finish line.

That was until the team got hot to end the year with a bunch of the G League guys and ruined the team’s stock in the 2019 NBA Draft.

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Since that dominant Christmas Day win over the Warriors, the Lakers have not only missed the playoffs but Laker fans have seen Magic Johnson resign as President of Basketball Operations as well as Luke Walton parting ways and signing to coach the Sacramento Kings.

It has been a joke and the organization has not really done much to help it. While the offseason has not yet started, it isn’t hard to see through the facade and realize that the organization is a mess internally.

When it does come to the offseason, though, it is also quite apparent that the Los Angeles Lakers have a massive disadvantage that they quite control.

And as silly as it sounds, that disadvantage is that the team is the Lakers.

The Lakers have this mystique around them as perhaps the most historic franchise in the NBA; the organization has 16 championships, which is second to the Boston Celtics because of Bill Russell, and has churned out countless superstars.

Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal, Jerry West, Elgin Baylor, Wilt Chamberlain, James Worthy and now even LeBron James. Some of the biggest names to ever play basketball have donned the purple and gold at some point.

It is that prestige that has hurt the Lakers as it has caused this anti-Lakers agenda throughout the league. Granted, the tampering incident with Paul Geroge did not help this cause, but it is clear that teams do not want to give into the Lakers’ requests and be the team that is responsible for making them great again.

Just look at how the New Orleans Pelicans treated the Anthony Davis trade situation. Everything that was leaked seemed to come from the Pelicans’ side of the discussions and was done so to hurt the Lakers. New Orleans did not want to give into Magic and LeBron’s demands.

Free agents are even going to be hard to come by as it is a very difficult thing to play alongside LeBron James. While that is not an anti-Lakers bias, it is an obstacle that the team has to overcome.

Nobody wants to help the Lakers. It appears as if the team is viewed as the bully in the class that now needs some help and won’t get it from a single person.

Next. The Lakers are great at drafting. dark

No team has an objective to help another team, that would be absolutely silly. However, it is not crazy to think that most of the NBA doesn’t only want to not help the Los Angeles Lakers, but wants to hurt them as well.

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