MY ACCOUNT
Frank Vogel was fired after the Los Angeles Lakers endured “a disappointing season at every level”, according to general manager Rob Pelinka.
The Lakers missed out on a place in the NBA playoffs after a 33-49 season saw them finish 11th in the Western Conference, costing the head coach his job on Monday.
Vogel led the Lakers to the NBA championship in his first season at the helm, but a poor campaign has seen him removed from the post just 18 months later.
Speaking after the announcement of Vogel’s departure, the Lakers’ vice-president of basketball operations and general manager Pelinka said the time had come for a change.
“I want to thank him for three really strong years,” Pelinka said of Vogel. “We just felt like it was time for a change in our leadership voice. Frank is a great man, a great coach and will go on to do great things.
“This was a disappointing Lakers season at every level. In the face of disappointment, our fans expect more, and that’s at every facet.
“I think when you have disappointment, you need to take ownership of that and vow to make the adjustments to be better. That’s where the work starts today.
“We’ve been in this place before and we know what it takes to put in the work to fix it, and that’s where our energy and time will be spent in the coming days.”
In his 19th season in the league, Lakers star LeBron James averaged 30.3 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.2 assists in 37.2 minutes per game.
Pelinka acknowledged the roster assembled for this season was not good enough, but felt confident the Lakers can experience success again in the future, with James remaining their lynchpin.
“We need to do all we can to be caretakers of his legacy and to try to build the best team we can around him,” he added. “We had the objective for that last year and obviously this roster did not work.
“But there’s a great level of trust in our collaboration with him to make sure we get it right this summer and fix it.
“I don’t know exactly how long LeBron will play but, of course, this year he played at the highest level. [It was] an incredible year for him offensively, and he feels highly motivated to return next year and have another elite level of play.
“If our team had found a way to win more, he would have been in the MVP conversation. For him to play at that level in the 19th year of his career is jaw-dropping, and his motivation to come back and do that again next year was palpable in my exit interview with him.
“Every indication we’ve received is that he sees the Lakers as his home.”
