The Los Angeles Lakers lost their sixth straight game at the hands of the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday night, and as a result Magic Johnson has decided to close the book on their season. L.A.’s record has dipped to 15-21 — the furthest under .500 they have been all year — and the Laker legend sees no way the team can recover.
“It’s over for my Lakers,” Johnson said as the Lakers trailed 64-48 at halftime. “No playoffs, no nothing.”
Earlier in the season, Magic was so upset with Jim Buss for hiring Mike D’Antoni over Phil Jackson that he decided to take a two-day leave of absence from Twitter. Last week, he turned his attention to the players and blasted them for not being able to respond when facing adversity. Now, with 46 games still remaining in the season, he has given up hope.
While the Lakers have more than enough talent to turn things around, it’s easier to envision things getting worse rather than improving. L.A. has held its opponents to less than 100 points in just 11 of 36 games this season. They have been able to put up points but look far too old and slow to keep up with anyone on defense — let alone a young, explosive team like the Thunder.
As Kobe Bryant recently summed up to perfection, the Lakers are old. Even if they somehow sneak into the postseason, it’s impossible to envision them making any type of deep run with the way they have looked all season long.
