Ex-Lakers Center Takes a Jab at Rob Pelinka: ‘Why Did You Do That to Us?’
Dwight Howard pinned the blame on vice president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka for the Los Angeles Lakers‘ failure to win another championship since their Orlando Bubble run in 2020.
“I’m going to tell you who it was. Rob Pelinka, man!” Howard said on the recent episode of “DH12 Above The Rim. “God, Rob. Why did you do that to us? Rob, come on. I still love you, Rob. We still had the squad and we could have run it back.”
The Lakers’ 2020 team was stacked with defensive-minded players that accentuated LeBron James and Anthony Davis‘ dynamic play.
Howard played backup center and at times allowed Davis to play power forward, his natural position.
Veterans Rajon Rondo, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Alex Caruso and Markieff Morris were all stout defensive players. Kyle Kuzma was also a solid contributor, though he struggled in the Finals.
Pelinka dismantled the team after injuries prevented them from repeating. Their injury-riddled 2020-21 season ended in an opening-round playoff loss to the Phoenix Suns with Davis suffering a groin injury in Game 4.
The Lakers traded Kuzma, Caldwell-Pope for Russell Westbrook. They let Caruso walk in free agency and signed past-their-primes Carmelo Anthony and Deandre Jordan.
The Westbrook experiment ultimately backfired as the Lakers missed the postseason. The Westbrook deal was labeled as one of the five worst trades over the last five years.
Lakers Back to the Drawing Board
After their missteps following their 17th NBA championship, the Lakers have since fired their last two coaches, including Frank Vogel who guided them in the Orlando Bubble.
Vogel’s replacement Darvin Ham was able to lead the Lakers back to the Western Conference in his first year at the helm but his failure to solve the Denver Nuggets puzzle led to his firing.
Now, the Lakers are back to the drawing board.
After back-to-back national champion coach Dan Hurley of UConn declined their offer, the Lakers settled with another first-time head coach in JJ Redick.
Redick’s hire was the only significant move the Lakers did this offseason.
Lakers’ Quiet Offseason
The Lakers’ quiet offseason was not for the lack of trying.
They have targeted Klay Thompson and DeMar DeRozan but both free agents went to Dallas and Sacramento, respectively via sign-and-trade. The Lakers’ lack of financial flexibility doomed their offseason.
During their rookies Bronny James and Dalton Knecht‘s introductory press conference, Pelinka explained their cautious approach in the trade market.
“We’re going to always be aggressive to trying to make roster upgrades and we’ll be relentless to continue to look at what we can do,” Pelinka told reporters.
But he also noted they are being cautious because of the new, punitive Collective Bargaining Agreement that restricts teams who reach the first and second aprons on what they can do to build out their rosters.
“If the right deal comes and we have to put in draft picks, we will,” Pelinka told reporters. “We are now in the apron world.”
The Lakers have two first-round picks (2029 and 2031) at their disposal plus five second-round picks from next year’s draft until 2031.
Pelinka cited contending teams losing players, which is a result of the new CBA.
Alder Almo is a basketball journalist covering the NBA for Heavy.com. He has more than 15 years of experience in local and international media, including broadcast, print and digital. He previously covered the Knicks for Empire Sports Media and the NBA for Off the Glass. Alder is from the Philippines and is now based in Jersey City, New Jersey. More about Alder Almo
