LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers are eliminated, blame everyone

PHOENIX, ARIZONA – APRIL 05: LeBron James #6 of the Los Angeles Lakers walks off the court following the NBA game against the Phoenix Suns at Footprint Center on April 05, 2022 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns defeated the Lakers 121-110. 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 Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Keep that same energy.

That is what LeBron James tweeted at the beginning of this season when many dared to question his Los Angeles Lakers squad.

At 31-48, here is a message to the Lakers star: We will keep the same energy. As a matter of fact, we will double it.

LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers are eliminated, blame everyone

Tuesday’s 121-110 loss to the Phoenix Suns, combined with the San Antonio Spurs going into Denver and upsetting the Nuggets, means that the Los Angeles Lakers, led by LeBron James, are officially out of the playoffs and the play-in tournament.

Yes, the Lakers, who were picked by almost everyone with a microphone, Vegas odds, and a keyboard to win the Western Conference, will not be competing in the postseason.

Does anyone remember LeBron’s tweet on April Fool’s Day? If we didn’t know any better, with the Lakers now 17 games below .500, this might not have been an April Fools Joke.

https://twitter.com/KingJames/status/1509941094712184834?s=20&t=6WDPUkLh2aAFK_pc0aWchw

So who gets the blame? If you watch television, you will see the blame being directed at almost anyone but James. Take Fox Sports 1’s Undisputed. Shannon Sharpe, a die-hard LeBron James fanatic, says James deserves 5-8 percent of the blame.

Five to eight percent?!! Are you honestly kidding me?? If Sharpe had said 20-30 percent of the blame, it would have made sense. But not even 10 percent of the blame?

If this same thing happened with Tom Brady, and the Patriots/Buccaneers struggled and lost like this, we know good and well that Sharpe would be gloating and dishing out 85-100 percent of the blame on Brady.

Remember that whoever gets the lion’s share of the credit has to take the lion’s share of the blame. Fellow host Skip Bayless went 75 percent, which was a bit much, but still better than less than 10 percent. As we all know, Sharpe didn’t like that, but what else is new?

But in all seriousness, who gets the blame? That would be LeBron James and the Lakers front office together. A 50-50 split. LeBron bypassed DeMar DeRozan and Buddy Hield for Russell Westbrook, whose abysmal play on the court upon arriving in Los Angeles has given him a new name, “Westbrick.”

The front office gets the blame for mortgaging the future, draft picks, and the ability to build young by trading for Westbrook. Anthony Davis does not get absolved either. Ever since the bubble championship, injuries have derailed him. Is it all his fault? No. But if you are constantly getting injured, something is wrong that needs attention.

Unfortunately for the Purple and Gold, the real scapegoat will be Frank Vogel, to no detriment of his own. The players look as if they quit. That will hurt Vogel’s chances of landing a job in the NBA.

Also, before the barrage of outrage arrives regarding why Kevin Durant and the Nets haven’t been criticized and how Durant should have done more, pump the brakes. It seems natural that whenever LeBron and the Lakers are criticized, the subject has to be changed.

Other factors came into play in Brooklyn, such as the unreliability of Ben Simmons, the James Harden fiasco, and Kyrie Irving being in and out of the lineup. Do the Nets deserve blame? Absolutely, but not like the Lakers.

LA gets most of the television coverage on networks such as FOX and ESPN, and more importantly, even when the Lakers are out of the playoffs, they will still be talked about, at the expense of other good teams that deserve attention, such as the Suns, Milwaukee Bucks, and Dallas Mavericks.

The reality is that the Lakers don’t deserve this much coverage. Charles Barkley even refers to them as “The Team from Southern California.” Blown lead after blown lead all season long, notably the recent game against the New Orleans Pelicans game at the Smoothie King Arena. And then press conferences throughout the season where players like Westbrook are questioning reporters for asking basic questions.

Excuses, excuses. How are we, the people, supposed to trust you, LeBron James, and the Los Angeles Lakers when all we get are excuses? The actions of making excuses are resulting consequences, i.e., losing games.

This unit was not a good group scheme-wise from Day One, and there are a few that recognized it. Still, they were picked to get to the Finals by many. They won’t even make the playoffs, in an expanded field, nonetheless. What does that say?

It means that paper rosters mean nothing and that those takes look blasphemous. Second, the blame goes to everyone, and everyone gets a fair share of the pie. There’s no shortchanging when it comes to the blame game.

Had the Lakers been winning, the praise would have blown the roof off the Crypto.com arena. They aren’t winning, they will finish below 0.500, they have no draft picks, and they have bloated contracts on their roster that are hard to get off from.

A total mess. LeBron gets 50 percent of the blame and the front office and the rest of the roster get 50 percent of the blame. That’s a fair assessment. Some won’t like it. So what? The truth hurts, and LA is out.

You asked us to keep the same energy, LeBron James; we didn’t just keep it, we tripled it, and it won’t be going anywhere anytime soon. Might as well deal with it.