It’s been a nightmare season for the Los Angeles Lakers. Despite being pegged in the preseason as the second-biggest favorite to win the NBA title in 2022, LA is 31-47 through 68 games and inches away from being eliminated from playoff contention.

Rob Pelinka and the entire front office are clearly the most to blame for the Lakers’ struggles this season, but it’s much easier to blame the head coach at the end of the day. So, before the disappointing season has even concluded, the Lakers have reportedly decided Frank Vogel won’t be sticking around for another year.

The Lakers’ playoff hopes are on life support

Who could’ve predicted this before the season?

With just four games left on the schedule, the Lakers are two games out of the final play-in spot in the Western Conference. If LA loses to the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night and the San Antonio Spurs beat the Denver Nuggets, it will officially be eliminated from playoff contention.

That didn’t seem remotely possible seven months ago. The Lakers entered the season with +450 odds to win the title in 2022. Only the Brooklyn Nets were above them on the odds board. With LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and now Russell Westbrook on the roster, how could they fail?

Well, for one, James and Davis have missed a ton of games this year due to injury. Westbrook hasn’t, but he’s having his worst scoring seasons since 2010, and his defensive rating is also the worst it’s ever been. Oh, and it turns out filling out a roster with LeBron’s friends and other cheap veterans well outside their primes wasn’t a smart management decision.

So, maybe we really should’ve seen this coming?

Either way, the Lakers are going to end up as the most disappointing team in the NBA this season, and someone has to take all the blame.

LA has reportedly decided Frank Vogel’s fate

Facing elimination tonight, the Lakers are still expected to part ways with coach Frank Vogel at season’s end. Two names most often linked by league figures as potential replacements currently coach other teams: Quin Snyder and Doc Rivers. More at @BR_NBA: https://t.co/ldgWmgZMyu

— Jake Fischer (@JakeLFischer) April 5, 2022

The Lakers’ season isn’t officially over just yet, but the team has already decided Vogel’s fate.

According to Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report, the Lakers “are still expected to part ways with embattled play-caller.” Vogel led LA to a championship two years ago, but losing in the first round and missing the playoffs the following two seasons isn’t going to cut it with LeBron on your roster.

Again, Vogel is hardly the biggest problem on this team, but the Lakers can’t afford to run it back after a disastrous 2021-22 season.

Quin Snyder or Doc Rivers could replace Vogel

Quin Snyder would be a perfect get for the Lakers if he were to part ways with Utah.

Familiar with the organization having already been an assistant & checks majority of the boxes you want.

He’d be my No. 1 pick. Doc Rivers is a hard no.

— Ry (@JustRyCole) April 5, 2022

Not only do the Lakers know they’re firing their head coach in the coming weeks, but they reportedly have a few replacements on their radar already.

According to Marc Stein, Utah Jazz head coach Quin Snyder is the most popular name floating around. Fischer reported Philadelphia 76ers head coach Doc Rivers could also be a candidate for the job. If the Sixers suffer another early playoff exit, Rivers could be looking for a new job himself.

Either coach would be an upgrade from Vogel, but the Lakers need to completely reshape their roster this offseason if they want to return to the contender tier.

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