The Los Angeles Lakers have done a pretty poor job of concealing the fact that they are a mess this year. After coming into the season with title aspirations, they now find themselves 30-41 with 71 games in the books and on the verge of missing the playoffs altogether.
In the midst of all the on-the-court woes have been a variety of embarrassing outbursts, incessant infighting and general humiliation.
This week, Lakers swingman Malik Monk provided a window into just how bad the chemistry and dynamics in LA’s locker room truly are.
Specifically, Monk went into detail regarding the relationship between the younger and older players in the locker room.
“S—, everything,” Monk told ESPN’s Dave McMenamin when asked about what he and his good friend, Lakers rookie Austin Reaves, talk about. “Ups and downs. Rookie wall. Older guys yelling at the rookies because it’s their fault. Everything they do, it’s your fault out there because they know everything and you don’t and when you mess up, you just got to take it.
“You got to deal with things like that. I talk to Austin almost every day.”
Yikes.
Again, it’s not exactly a secret that the rapport between various Lakers is bad. Team stars have been taking low-key shots at each other through the media for a while now. But for Monk to come out and say so publicly so casually is telling of how over it everyone in that locker room is.
In the same interview, Monk also got brutally honest about his Lakers future. With that in mind – it’s unsurprising that he is so open about the team’s internal woes. He clearly doesn’t care anymore.
A gamechanger for college basketball. https://t.co/WtFvJ5unth
— Game 7 (@game7__) March 21, 2022
It will be interesting to see how the Lakers ultimately close out the year. At this point, they really have nothing at all to play for. How will that be reflected in effort output over the next few games?
Time will tell.
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Charles Kruger has been credentialed to cover two Super Bowls, four NBA Finals, and one World Series. A 20-year veteran in the sports world, he has sources spanning the NBA, MLB, NFL, UFC and NASCAR. Currently residing in Los Angeles, Calif., he is Game 7’s go-to source for rumors surrounding the Lakers, Clippers and Dodgers.
