“It all served to sort of undermine Frank Vogel” — Lakers players were reportedly texting during games in front of Frank Vogel
Frank Vogel
© Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
As if the Lakers' dramatic season couldn't get any more comical, more stories have been leaked to add to what has been a historic disaster of a year.
The latest report came hours before ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski announced Frank Vogel's impending firing moments after the purple and gold nabbed their last win of the season.
According to Heavy's Steve Bulpett, a source said that multiple players were disrespectfully using their phones and texting right in front of Frank Vogel's face while games were going on.
"I couldn't believe it. And later when we met up, he said he wasn't the only motherf***** texting other people," the source said, as reported by told Heavy.
The Frank Vogel disrespect continues.
The Lakers ended their atrocious season with a horrible 33-49 record as they are set to miss the playoffs for the seventh time in nine years. Vogel, who was handed a roster that didn't fit his coaching philosophies, was the most prominent scapegoat for all the dysfunction this season.
The players reportedly knew that Vogel was going through a hard situation, but that still didn't stop them from checking out this season.
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"The players liked Frank and thought he knew what he was doing. They saw him as a good guy and a good basketball guy, but Frank had been marginalized too much. The Rambis component, the LeBron checking out component — it all served to sort of undermine Frank Vogel," the source said.
Aside from LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Russell Westbrook's failure to meet expectations this season, there's no denying that Vogel wasn't put in the best situation to succeed.
No, he wasn't the perfect coach, but this year's roster wasn't either. At the end of the day, Vogel led this organization to a championship 18 months ago and has proven that he can thrive for as long as his pieces fit his solid defensive principles. Furthermore, it also didn't help that the veteran-laden Lakers didn't stay healthy this year.
According to ESPN Stats & Information, Los Angeles was the only team that didn't have a single five-person lineup play 100 minutes together this season. However, Vogel's lineups and rotations were sometimes questionable, but it wasn't his fault that the team didn't have a consistent roster all year.
What's next for Frank Vogel?
Wojnarowski also reported that Vogel wouldn't be unemployed for too long as he is expected to have suitors in the offseason. Whether that's a head-coaching job or an assistant role for another contending team, Vogel's championship resume will attract many organizations around the league.
But as he is set to deal with his departure from the Lakers in a few days, reports indicate that the defensive-minded coach welcomes the fact that he will no longer have to deal with this mess. I mean, who wouldn't be thankful?
"Trust me, Frank Vogel would have been happy to have been fired from that mess," a league insider said.
Considering what Vogel has been through the past few days or, frankly, the whole season, he deserves a nice relaxing vacation by the beach this summer.
The Lakers did their championship coach dirty by doing no favors for him since the start of the season.
