Reassessing and grading Lakers tumultuous offseason

If it feels as if the Lakers have had multiple offseasons this summer, it’s because of how eventful the last two months have been.There’s been LeBron James, one of the greatest players in NBA history and the player who led the Lakers to their last NBA title in 2020, leaving the team in free agency for the 76ers after eight years with the franchise. There was a roster retooling around superstar guard Luka Doncic, which as of Friday, includes nine new players.There will be another majority ownership change after Mark Walter agreed to sell his shares of the Lakers to Josh Kushner and Bob Iger at a historic valuation of $12.5 billion, less than a year after Walter bought the team from the Buss family.All while Walter’s business empire is facing a federal investigation into potential loan fraud and business wrongdoings.As for the Buss family, it is set for another date in court as current Lakers governor Jeanie Buss attempts to block her five siblings (Jim, Johnny, Janie, Joey and Jesse Buss) from selling the family’s 17.8% share of the Lakers.Disorienting, to say the least. The ramifications of the Lakers’ offseason won’t be immediately known. At least not off the court. It’ll take at least another few weeks — and possibly months — for Kushner and Iger to officially purchase the Lakers from Walter and become the franchise’s new majority owners.With the Buss family not having a court hearing until Nov.

5, it’ll probably be a while before its latest family infighting — and its ownership stake of the Lakers — is resolved. On the court, it’ll take even longer to know whether the roster changes since the beginning of July were worth it in the form of deep playoff runs, title contention and championships.But despite the roster turnover and off-the-court turmoil, the Lakers’ offseason has still been successful, earning a B grade with a month before training camp starts in late September. Even with the Lakers coming up empty-handed in their ...