History of The Los Angeles Lakers - 2004–07: Rebuilding

2004–07: Rebuilding

The following summer after the 2003–04 season, the Lakers imploded. Jackson was burned out, and the Lakers' management was unwilling to raise his salary from $6 million a year to $12 million that he wanted to continue. Also, assistant coach Tex Winter said Jackson announced at the 2004 All-Star break that he would not want to return to the Lakers if Bryant returned. The long-simmering tensions between Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant finally came to a head. When Jackson was not retained as coach (a move many believed to have been orchestrated by Bryant), O'Neal demanded a trade and it was granted; he went to the Miami Heat in return for Lamar Odom, Caron Butler, and Brian Grant. Bryant tested the free-agent market, apparently coming very close to signing with the Los Angeles Clippers before deciding to stay with the Lakers. Jackson retired to his ranch in Montana and Rudy Tomjanovich came in as the new head coach.

Gary Payton was dealt to Boston and Karl Malone retired after undergoing knee surgery, but not before the possibility of his return was eliminated when he and Bryant had a falling-out. Despite all of the offseason movement, the Lakers did manage a 24-19 start at the beginning of the 2004–05 season, but it was at this time Tomjanovich left the team for health concerns. The Lakers struggled without Tomjanovich, but were still able to manage a 32-29 record and were in position to make the playoffs. However, the Lakers were not able to overcome late season injuries to Bryant and Odom, and went on to lose 19 of their last 21 games, finishing with a record of 34-48.

Despite all of this, Bryant continued to set records, including becoming the youngest player to reach 14,000 points, and setting a franchise record with 43 consecutive made free throws. The team also made 100% of their free throws three times, the first time since 1991–92. But all of that amounted to little, as the Lakers ended the season below .500 and missed the playoffs.

The 2005–06 season would see the Lakers reunite with Phil Jackson. Jackson's year off, including vacationing in Australia, left him rejuvenated, whereas the Lakers' struggle in 2004–05 caused Jerry Buss to reconsider his willingness to meet Jackson's salary demands. Although many have felt Kobe Bryant desired Jackson's departure in the first place, and though Jackson was subsequently critical of Bryant publicly, Bryant indicated that he welcomed Jackson's return, and the move left fans very optimistic about the Lakers season. Indeed, no public disagreements between the two surfaced throughout their first season reunited, and the player-coach relationship appeared to remain solid.

In the off-season, the Lakers' most significant player personnel moves had been acquiring Kwame Brown from Washington in exchange for Caron Butler and Chucky Atkins, and drafting center Andrew Bynum straight from high school.

After the previous seasons's poor showing, most felt that simply making the playoffs would be an accomplishment. The new Laker team seemed somewhat modeled after Jackson's 1990s Chicago Bulls dynasty which had garnered 6 championships. Lamar Odom, a gifted facilitator forward, was also seen by some to be a "Scottie Pippen" type of player to complement Kobe Bryant's talents.

After a shaky start, the team's chemistry appeared to improve dramatically during the latter half of the season. The Lakers managed to put forth more consistent efforts as the regular season drew to a close. The team's late season surge was enough to secure a playoff berth and allay some of their fans' immediate concerns about the team. They played the second seeded Phoenix Suns, and after Bryant hit two clutch shots to win Game 4 at Los Angeles, they appeared to be en route to an upset with a 3–1 series lead, which would set up a "Hallway Series" in the second round against the Los Angeles Clippers, who had already advanced by ousting the Denver Nuggets. However, Phoenix, led by 2006 MVP Steve Nash, was able to rally. They would win at home 114-97 in Game 5, win at Los Angeles 126-118 in overtime of Game 6 (almost losing in regulation), and blow out in Game 7 121–90 at Phoenix.

The Lakers trailed 60–45 at halftime of Game 7. Bryant had 23 points at halftime but would score only one point on three shots in the second half. A number of critics, such as Bill Simmons suggested that Bryant, with his team trailing by so much, should have attempted more shots in the second half; some, such as Charles Barkley even suggested that Bryant refused to shoot to "prove a point" about the inferior scoring ability of his teammates. Bryant and coach Phil Jackson denied this, with both stating that Kobe was following the halftime gameplan by getting others involved.

During the 2006 off-season, the Lakers drafted UCLA point guard Jordan Farmar. To the surprise of many fans, the Lakers started the season strongly with key victories over teams like the Utah Jazz, Dallas Mavericks, and San Antonio Spurs. However, things started going downhill after a slew of injuries to Lamar Odom, Kwame Brown, and Luke Walton. Kobe Bryant was suspended twice for striking opponents, and some started to question if he was a "dirty player." Outraged at these criticisms, Bryant went on a record-setting 4-game streak of scoring at least 50 points. The Lakers managed to grab the seventh seed, but lost to the Phoenix Suns 4-1 in the first round.

Following the 2006–07 season the future of Kobe Bryant's career as a Laker fell into doubt, when he demanded to be traded. For a week he tiraded and the situation escalated when a videotape about him was released. The video recorded him saying that the Lakers should have traded Andrew Bynum for Jason Kidd. Bryant insulted Bynum and was critical of General Manager Mitch Kupchak. Roster management decided to resign Derek Fisher, a past hero, but the Lakers would enter the season frustrated and with question marks.