I mean, I said they underperformed even in the face of these injuries.

I just think the bar is considerably lower in light of the things that have taken place. Based on what's happened, they could still have been a 6 seed, perhaps even 5 is a reasonable goal.

On paper, a 1-2 seed and 60+ wins is the standard, but adding everything else into the equation changes that projection. If you were to say, "they have all these guys but here's all the shit that's going to happen" going into the season, NOBODY in their right mind without an agenda would say 60+ and a 1-2 seed. They'd say 50 and a 6 seed, possibly 5.

I've been as vocal as anyone about they're own role in this, especially Kobe during a particularly irritating stretch despite his otherwise stellar season. To say that I'm just a crybaby means you aren't really paying attention to what I'm saying or you're simply being unreasonable.

>I don't give this group points for persevering or trying, this
>is the Lakers.

Yes, this is the Lakers. The overall standard is pretty damn clear and we've said it time and again: we're about titles. Rings. That's the standard.

When a season is THIS maligned it just is what it is. Kobe damn sure gets points for how he played for lik 85% of the season, especially near the end. IDGAF what the expectations were in the beginning, he played like a Champ damn near the entire season and it's hard to fault him in the face of it all. If ever there were a Lakers season that needed to be viewed in proper context, this is the one.

>This season was a shitshow, regardless of whether they snuck
>past the Jazz at the end.

Agreed. They still could have performed better and won more games in spite of what happened and I don't know how many times I have to say it to get that across. I just think the expectation changes considerably in light of how things went this year. That doesn't mean I find how it wound up acceptable, even if I do admire the way they never quit on themselves. Pau has played like his Championship self since he's been back. Still, it's a disapointing season that should have been better even with all that's happened. let's just not act like it's unreasonable to base expectations on how things went down as opposed to what names on paper suggest.