For the second season in a row, the Los Angeles Lakers’ title chances were derailed by a rash of injuries to their roster.
LeBron James and Anthony Davis missed time with various ailments, while the rest of the team’s older players also unfortunately found themselves on the sidelines throughout the year. In hindsight, it was probably foolish to sign so many aging players and rely on them to be available over the course of an entire season so getting younger will surely be a priority for the front office in the summer.
The Lakers as an organization have tried to revamp their training staff the past couple of seasons in hopes of staving off injuries and it looks like they are making another major change as they are parting ways with Judy Seto, via Dan Woike of L.A. Times:
Judy Seto, a longtime presence within the Lakers training staff, is no longer with the team after her contract expired, sources with knowledge told The Times.
It was also reported that Los Angeles does not have plans to replace Seto and instead the department will be headed by Roger Sancho:
The team hired Roger Sancho as head athletic trainer last summer, and sources say he’ll lead that department just like he did last season when Seto was still on staff. The Lakers, a source said, will not be replacing Seto in her “director of sports performance” role.
Seto has had a long relationship with the Lakers organization that dates back to the 1990s. Seto is famously known for her work with Kobe Bryant, who used to constantly praise her for the work she did to keep him as healthy as possible. She was the team’s director of sports performance for three years and served as their lead physical therapist from 2011 to 2016.
With an emphasis on keeping stars healthy for the long haul, it is an interesting move, to say the least and it could mean more internal changes are in store in the next couple of months. Davis believes the 2021-22 roster was capable of winning a championship before the injuries happened, so it will be interesting to see if their injury luck finally turns around.
Anthony Davis frustrated with injury-prone label
Davis has a reputation around the league for frequently being hurt, often serving as the butt of jokes. The star big man hears all the outside noise and admitted he is frustrated with being injury-prone.
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