Jeanie Buss believed "changes needed to be made" for next season

The Lakers desperately needed to make some moves during the off season as their last season ended in a disaster as they only managed to win 33 games. As a result, they missed the playoffs for the second time in the last four years. According to the Lakers owner, Jeanie Buss, the team has made the changes they needed.

So far, the Lakers have let go some veterans and replaced them with young talent like Lonnie Walker IV. They also traded two players with some upside for the all-NBA defensive player Patrick Beverley. But that's it. They are still trying to move Russell Westbrook, but so far there has been no news about a possible trade.

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" Last season was a huge disappointment. I think if you look back, exactly a year ago there was a lot of the media who predicted us to be at the top. We certainly didn't live up to that expectation, and it was hugely disappointing because you can't possibly contend for a championship if you're not even in the playoffs. So we made some changes. And, you know, I think changes needed to be made," explained Buss.

Right now, not many experts put this team as a favorite to win the championship. Most projections put the team as the ninth or eighth best team in the West. This probably makes them reach the playoffs unlike last season, but there's no reason to believe that this roster can reach the Finals.

Lakers bad seasons

The Lakers haven't been a very competitive team in the last couple of years. They have missed the playoffs more times than they have made them. Of course, they won the championship, but that was in a shortened season.