The Death of A Dynasty: The Lakers

         

Since their emigration from the desolate land of Minneapolis the Los Angeles Lakers have been a hallmark of the NBA and a staple of California life. Indeed, The purple and gold have been NBA royalty.  It has always been this way. A little less than two seasons ago it appeared that it  would always be this way. Success has been a friend of the Lakers since the time of Elgin Baylor, through era of “Showtime”, onto the era of Shaq and finally to the two glorious championships earned solely by the Black Mamba. Over the past quarter century, The Los Angeles Lakers have been the most successful franchise in American sports.

Recent, experiences have begun to cast doubt on whether the dynasty is over. Even individuals who are faithful fans, such as myself, have begun to doubt whether or not the Los Angeles Lakers will continue this dominance. Do the Los Angeles Lakers remain a dynasty or have they simply reverted back to a basketball team?

Despite all the irrational love and emotion that I possess, I am sad to say that the logical side of me believes that the dynasty that has ruled at the top of the league for the past forty years has died. My brain has betrayed my heart and now I must justify my position.  Here are my reasons

Point Number 1: “The Wheels on the Buss Have Gone”

When Dr. Jerry Buss bought the Los Angeles Lakers in 1978 the game of basketball as we know it was revolutionized. Dr. Buss brought with him a much needed excitement for the sport of

basketball. Through his genius, Jerry Buss hatched the idea of the Laker Girls, the creation of the Fabulous Forum, and as luck would have it Dr. Buss and the Lakers organization were sent Magic Johnson. And so “Showtime” in LA began.

            During his tenure as owner of the Lakers Dr. Buss was known for two things, winning championships and knowing how to navigate through difficult decisions. Dr. Buss had the unique ability to place competent people in charge and then to trust that they would do their job. With this being stated, Dr. Buss also knew how to handle his own business. He knew when to trust a Jerry West who wanted to trade one of the best centers in the game for a high schooler from Lower Merion High School. He also knew when to let arguably the greatest center in the game leave his team.

            

I suppose the only fault of Mr. Buss was the fact that he had two children. Jeanie has done a lot of good for the team. Including an iron-clad vow of chastity to get Phil Jackson to come out of retirement and coach the Lakers. However, I don’t think she is able to manage an entire organization like the Lakers, especially when she isn’t even in charge of the basketball operations. She has the difficult task of being the joint ruler of the laker kingdom, one which Dr. Buss himself never had to perform.

            As for Jim Buss? Well, is there anything that I could say that the Keyboard Cat could not?

Mr. Cat please play him off.

             Point Number 2 The Fight in the Dog

            Even in the worst of times (1994, 2005-2007) the Lakers showed some sort of heart. Though the Lakers were unable to make the playoffs in the 1994 season, Magic Johnson stepped out of retirement ad back in the limelight in order to bring some semblance of hope into the land of the Lakers. While the Lakers were unable to make the playoffs in 2006, Kobe Bryant still managed to put up some of the strongest scoring numbers of his career, including an 81 point performance against the Toronto Rapters.

            The point of this is that there was still some fight. There was some sort of leadership. There was someone providing hope to the Laker Community. All that is left for the Lakers is: an ailing Kobe Bryant (whose 48 million dollar contract is damning to the rebuilding of this team for at least the next two years), a Pau Gasol (who I guarantee has a countdown going of the day, hour, minute, and second that July 1^st occurs and he can get the out of Los Angeles), And a Steve Nash (who someone needs to take to the back of the barn and end his misery).

Point Number 3 Instagram

Ladies and Gentlemen I halfway into writing this piece, I have changed my mind. I just took a look at the Lakers Instagram and the photos posted along with the comments made by the fans have given me a new sense of hope for the Lakeshow. 

The Vanilla Guerrilla is giving our new point guard @jamesfgoldstein some tips on how to handle the ball. 

 

I really think that Ryan Kelly is going to end up a star in this league.

    Read Ransan08's comment 

@goswamivik shares his wisdom with us

 Pau is literally walking away from his teammates in disgust right now

As you can see from these pictures, there really isn't much to hold onto. 

Point Number 4 “This is Showtime?”

Over the past thirty-five years the Los Angeles Lakers have provided the most excitement within the NBA. For nearly four decades the rest of the NBA has been trying to replicate whatever moves the Los Angeles Lakers have made.  Most have failed miserably in doing so.  Fast breaks, big men, high scores, good defense, high profile businessmen, movie stars, and The Laker girls produced something that no other team could replicate, but everyone tried.

With this being stated, something has changed in the NBA. People are not replicating what the Lakers have created. Lebron and the Heath have provided enticing and fast paced action. Lob City is in full force. Is there really anything that Lakers can provide that other teams can’t? Do we really have anything that worth watching or do we just have Bob Sacre and fourteen other players that should be struggling for minutes in the D-League?

Point Number 12

The one hundred and five documented cases adultery committed by Tiger  Woods pales in comparison to the nearly 14 million loyal Laker fans that Dwight Howard screwed over  with a single signature on the bottom of a Houston Rockets contract. Indeed, Howard’s cowardice has forever damaged his already soiled reputation. His indecisive and selfish nature has damaged his rep to the point that he is no longer considered by any legitimate source as one of the top ten players in the NBA, even if he really should be.

However, the sin that Howard committed was far worse than the destruction of his own reputation. Howard dared to defy more than fifty years of tradition. D-12 walked away from the Los Angeles Lakers. This was not Magic telling Jerry buss that “Paul Westhead goes or I go.” This was no case of Shaquille O’Neal saying “It’s either Kobe or me.” What Dwight said was unprecedented in the history of the Lakers. Dwight wanted no part of the Lakers. He had no desire to remain in Los Angeles. There was no recompense, no restitution that the Lakers could have provided. Dwight simply did not want to be a Laker and I will always hate the SOB for that very reason.

 I do not wish him well. I do not hope that he lives his days peacefully. I can only hope that his career ends in an ignominious demise. I can only hope that he quickly becomes a non-factor within the confines of the NBA.  He deserves no respect, no praise, and most certainly no coverage by the NBA.

In Conclusion 

I hope that I am wrong. I hope against hope that I am wrong. Sadly, I don’t think I am. In the words of the great Chick Hern, (who might I add most people my age or younger don’t even recall broadcasting a game) the door is closed the lights are out, the eggs are cooling, the butter’s getting hard, and the Jell-O’s jiggling. The Lakers are in the refrigerator.