Who is the worst positioned team for the rest of the decade?

[pipfan]

Bulls should get a mention here. We suck as is right now, plus have 2 future 1sts owed. This time next year we can very well be handing over a top 10 pick for free. Might as well call us the Brooklyn Bulls

I think this is one reason why we run it back next year, with the same squad more or less. Then, we will probably be another first round exit, hand over the #16 pick (and hopefully get #17 from Port). Then, the SA pick owed for 2025 is top 10 protected-not nearly as bad.

My idea is that we run it back, then trade Lavine/DDR/Caruso next summer, and start over around Ball/Ayo/PWill/assets from trading our guys/future cap space

[facothomas22]

Very easy.The Lakers and it's not even close. They have zero 1st round draft picks until 2027(yes you're reading that correctly). They have Lebron James,who will opt out for Free Agency after next season. Russell Westbrook will be a Free Agent after next season.That leave them with a injury prome Anthony Davis and bunch of low tier role player/scrubs until Davis expire in 2025,which at that point,he will opt out for free agency. I wouldn't be suprised if from the 2025/26-2027/28 seasons,their best players end up being someone like Austin Reeves or Horton Tucker who both have ceiling of a low tier role players. Even the 80s Clippers or the 2010s Kings weren't this awful position wise and had some actual good players to work with despite of being terrible overall.

[madmaxmedia]

Very easy.The Lakers and it's not even close. They have zero 1st round draft picks until 2027(yes you're reading that correctly). They have Lebron James,who will opt out for Free Agency after next season. Russell Westbrook will be a Free Agent after next season.That leave them with a injury prome Anthony Davis and bunch of low tier role player/scrubs until Davis expire in 2025,which at that point,he will opt out for free agency. I wouldn't be suprised if from the 2025/26-2027/28 seasons,their best players end up being someone like Austin Reeves or Horton Tucker who both have ceiling of a low tier role players. Even the 80s Clippers or the 2010s Kings weren't this awful position wise and had some actual good players to work with despite of being terrible overall.

So I voted for the Lakers for essentially all the reasons you listed. But they are also the team that could flip it all around the fastest.

They have 2 major but declining/expiring assets they could trade this offseason, and at least make up most of the outgoing draft capital. Russ is the only major contract and he is done in a year. After that they could sign 2 max players (because LA) and gradually rebuild their roster.

Regardless, they need a proper GM and POBO.

[Mauro Pedrosa]

Blazers warrant a mention.

We have an awful ownership with one foot out the door, an aging star with an uncertain trade value who can no longer raise our floor, an underwhelming mix of assets otherwise, and an "interim" GM who completely pooped the bed at the trade deadline and yet our apathetic ownership appears to still support.

Further mediocrity appears likely but we can't rule out becoming Kings-north either at this point.

Well said. What would you want to do as a Blazers fan? Cash in on Lillard or let him become an Allen Iverson / Karl Malone figure for Portland?

[facothomas22]

I hate the lakers as much as the next guy and in terms of draft assets and assets in general they are lacking but they possess the single best asset in maybe all of the nba......Hollywood and a winning history.

Saying they are **** for a decade is just ignoring basically the history of the league in of itself. Bad ownership be damned there will always be another superstar who wants to be there. Once they get one another follows.

Playing in LA isn't as good of asset anymore like it used to be. Otherwise the Lakers would've been able to attract High Quality Free Agents while they were rebuilding in the mid/late 2010s outside of Lebron. Plus players who want to be in LA would just join the Clippers anyway(they have much better Ownership,a much better GM, and they have a Head Coach that players respect and like). So saying that they are screwed for the next decade would be correct. It could take even be longer than deacde before this team becomes relevant again if the Laker draft selections starting in 2027 ether are just poor selections or not well developed(the Lakers are not known to develop their young talent correctly).

[Mister Ze]

Every California team except Warriors

[iqureshi]

I think alot of teams have some nice pieces. To suck for a decade is really hard outside of the Kings. OKC has the best future methinks, their GM has alot of picks and a history of few misses. They basically sat SAG out most of the season and still exceeded expectations cause of their fringe draft pick player drafting. I like what Orlando is building, they just need that star draft pick, Det is doing well with their drafting,

Lal, seems to be the only candidate. To get lebron they had 4/5 years of sucking followed by good drafting and talent acquisition. Lebron said eff that for the next 5 years, then further ruined it by trading for Westbrick. They may be 10 years till they have enough talent to land a megastar.

Honorable metions. (kings, (no faith in FO/Ownership, but you'd assume they'd fix that in the next 10 years and sheer luck), Bulls (no real direction, players are either Old, young or injured), Knicks (see bulls and Kings), Was (will probably lose beal, but still has good tradeable/young players), Ind (no real direction till they got lucky with stealing Haliburton), Portland (follows one good move with 3 bad moves), Spurs (if you took pop out they would be the worst team in the league, doubt he lasts the decade)

[SweetTouch]

The loser of this years nba finals

Getting into second place doesn’t get u any awards young bloods

[stillgotgame]

The Knicks and Kings are only on this because of their history. Both teams actually have picks, assets, and not really any bad deals to stack against them.

Knicks also have Dolan. You’re guaranteed purgatory until he sells the team or leaves.
Need proof a meddling owner is a killer - look what happened to the Bucks when Herb Kohl finally sold the team. Instant karma.

[Scalabrine]

The Knicks and Kings are only on this because of their history. Both teams actually have picks, assets, and not really any bad deals to stack against them.

Knicks also have Dolan. You’re guaranteed purgatory until he sells the team or leaves.
Need proof a meddling owner is a killer - look what happened to the Bucks when Herb Kohl finally sold the team. Instant karma.

Well they drafted Giannis the year before he sold the team. If they hadn't hit on that I doubt they'd be in any better of a situation to be honest with you. The 13 seasons previous to that, they had made the playoffs 8 times.

I never want to argue for Dolan, but I will say that the Rangers are considered a very well run franchise in the NHL and Dolan owns them as well.

[Perseus1966]

next decade Lakers
next 2 decades Mavs

[nickhx2]

Very easy.The Lakers and it's not even close. They have zero 1st round draft picks until 2027(yes you're reading that correctly). They have Lebron James,who will opt out for Free Agency after next season. Russell Westbrook will be a Free Agent after next season.That leave them with a injury prome Anthony Davis and bunch of low tier role player/scrubs until Davis expire in 2025,which at that point,he will opt out for free agency. I wouldn't be suprised if from the 2025/26-2027/28 seasons,their best players end up being someone like Austin Reeves or Horton Tucker who both have ceiling of a low tier role players. Even the 80s Clippers or the 2010s Kings weren't this awful position wise and had some actual good players to work with despite of being terrible overall.

So I voted for the Lakers for essentially all the reasons you listed. But they are also the team that could flip it all around the fastest.

They have 2 major but declining/expiring assets they could trade this offseason, and at least make up most of the outgoing draft capital. Russ is the only major contract and he is done in a year. After that they could sign 2 max players (because LA) and gradually rebuild their roster.

Regardless, they need a proper GM and POBO.

agree with all this. the issue is that they are burdened with westbrook for another season and they are gonna be stuck with an aging lebron, most likely until he retires, and for big time money - and that in itself isn't an issue if you just build with the right pieces around him and AD but they don't have picks, they literally have shown they have a complete inability and misunderstanding of how to create a winning team structure for those two (for the current and for the future), and the organization and the players are contributing to a really toxic environment where nobody wants to take accountability for anything. i see a buncha posts where people are handwaving and going "oh yeah the lakers will just sign the next big FA" but any star player with a touch of common sense would have to be absolutely braindead to sign with the lakers and think "oh wow what a great situation for me, i'm gonna turn this one around!"

like, what's crazy also to me is i think people so quickly forgot just how barren that team was with magic trying desperately to sign any FA that would give him the time of the day, only for them to continually spurn the lakers. but the lakers are gonna be in a WORSE situation once lebron retires or if he's not yet retired, he'll be consuming a gigantic amount of cap space while on his last legs and still be the domineering and toxic personality he's always been.

[babyjax13]

The Kings have not made the playoffs since I was 11, so until that changes, it's unfortunately them.

[PistolPeteJR]

If the lakers cant trade Russ this offseason, theyre screwed for the next 2 years. thankfully, theyre in LA and theyre the lakers & should be able to attract talent no matter what

Why two years? Russ expires next summer if he opts in.

[MagicBagley18]

I hate the lakers as much as the next guy and in terms of draft assets and assets in general they are lacking but they possess the single best asset in maybe all of the nba......Hollywood and a winning history.

Saying they are **** for a decade is just ignoring basically the history of the league in of itself. Bad ownership be damned there will always be another superstar who wants to be there. Once they get one another follows.

Playing in LA isn't as good of asset anymore like it used to be. Otherwise the Lakers would've been able to attract High Quality Free Agents while they were rebuilding in the mid/late 2010s outside of Lebron. Plus players who want to be in LA would just join the Clippers anyway(they have much better Ownership,a much better GM, and they have a Head Coach that players respect and like). So saying that they are screwed for the next decade would be correct. It could take even be longer than deacde before this team becomes relevant again if the Laker draft selections starting in 2027 ether are just poor selections or not well developed(the Lakers are not known to develop their young talent correctly).

Sorry but the clippers will never ever be the lakers. Good ownership or not. It’s just not the same. Mid to late 2010s? They won a championship in 2010 before the end of Kobe’s career and then were a dumpster fire and STILL got lebron James even with all the mismanagement and mistakes.

They followed that up by having AD demand a trade to Los Angeles and to the lakers and only to the lakers. What you’re saying is just wishful thinking and hopes and prayers and I’d love for you to be right but to say this is just glossing over nba history. Being a laker means something- they are one of maybe a half dozen franchises in all of sports that always carry weight.

It’s Los Angeles, it’s Hollywood and they may have down years or rebuilding years but they’ll always be back. You can say they’ll have to rebuild after lebron leaves but saying they’ll suck for a decade? Sorry but the last 40 years of nba history says other wise.

[Catchall]

The Lakers are going to sit back and wait for the next big-name free agent who wants to sign with them. Then that big-name free agent will attract another big-name free agent. As long as they can clear cap space, they can just wait for someone good to come along.

They've screwed up their draft capital and gave away their tradable young players for Westbrook, so that means they can't take advantage of players trying to force trades, but they can still build through free agency.

[Catchall]

I find it hard to believe that the Knicks can't seem to draft anyone in the lottery who changes their fortunes. They should literally just ask ESPN to make draft selections for them. Their last 4 lottery picks were Ntilikina, Knox, Barrett and Toppin. Only one of them is really panning out.

[pipfan]

I think they ride out the next 3 years of AD's deal-and have a all clean cap sheet. Attract 2 max FA's

[formula 400]

i am by far no lakers fan, but if this is a dig at them, then you have another thing coming.

they'll be in the dumps for a few years as every team does. but winning is cyclical with that team. after a few years of misery, lets see who bets they will win the chip before their own team.

[formula 400]

I hate the lakers as much as the next guy and in terms of draft assets and assets in general they are lacking but they possess the single best asset in maybe all of the nba......Hollywood and a winning history.

Saying they are **** for a decade is just ignoring basically the history of the league in of itself. Bad ownership be damned there will always be another superstar who wants to be there. Once they get one another follows.

Playing in LA isn't as good of asset anymore like it used to be. Otherwise the Lakers would've been able to attract High Quality Free Agents while they were rebuilding in the mid/late 2010s outside of Lebron. Plus players who want to be in LA would just join the Clippers anyway(they have much better Ownership,a much better GM, and they have a Head Coach that players respect and like). So saying that they are screwed for the next decade would be correct. It could take even be longer than deacde before this team becomes relevant again if the Laker draft selections starting in 2027 ether are just poor selections or not well developed(the Lakers are not known to develop their young talent correctly).

how many chips did the clips win in the last 5 years again? we all know they are the preseason champs, that is worth something. also, making the playoffs is a huge accomplishment