Frank Vogel on Lakers’ Roster After Trade Deadline: ‘This is a Group We Believe In’

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The Los Angeles Lakers decided to stand pat Thursday, failing to make any additions ahead of the trade deadline. However, that hasn’t left head coach Frank Vogel any less confident in his current group of players being able to get the job done.

Vogel said Friday, according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin:

“It’s a new day. I think our group had great energy today. Both in a team film session and in practice. I think there’s just a natural reset energy to our group, knowing that the trade deadline has passed. This is the group that we put together to start the year. This is a group we believe in.”

Vogel’s comments come after vice president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka said Thursday that he was in “alignment” with LeBron James and Anthony Davis, who hold plenty of influence over the Lakers front office, about the decision to not make any moves: 

“You can’t force another team to present yourself with a deal that is going to make your team be better. That’s up to them, and throughout this process, we had different things we looked at and like I’ve done in the past had conversations with LeBron and Anthony about it and I would say there’s alignment here. And that’s all that matters.”

However, McMenamin reported Friday a source said Pelinka’s statement was “totally false.” According to McMenamin, Pelinka, James and Davis did not have a conversation on Thursday, and “there was no go ahead or okay to have inaction at the deadline.”

It should be noted the Lakers did reportedly try to make some moves Thursday. According to The Athletic’s Bill Oram, the Lakers considered trading for a few players on Thursday, including Dennis Schroder and Cam Reddish. 

A deal for Schroder was unsuccessful because “there was some pushback from some in the organization” about bringing back the veteran guard, who played for the Purple and Gold during the 2020-21 campaign. 

The Lakers’ attempted deal for Reddish, which would have been a three-team trade with the Toronto Raptors and New York Knicks, wasn’t reached because the other two franchises couldn’t agree on draft compensation. 

In addition, L.A. reportedly shopped struggling point guard Russell Westbrook, per Yahoo Sports, but was unable to reach a deal. 

The Lakers have struggled mightily this season after undergoing a major roster makeover during the offseason in addition to dealing with injuries to both James and Davis. The team sits ninth in the Western Conference with a disappointing 26-30 record after being projected to be one of the best teams entering the 2021-22 campaign.