On Thursday, it was announced that some of the Lakers faithful were planning to hold a protest in front of the Staples Center to display their displeasure with the organization. Despite having one of the greatest players in the world in LeBron James, the Lakers missed the playoffs for the second season in a row.
This poor performance could be blamed on a host of injuries they suffered, but there's no excuse for the fact free agency is about to start and the team is still coachless. There have also been rumors of disconnect within the organization, which included Magic Johnson leaving his role as president. That combined with talks of trading LeBron and not getting a free agent pushed fans over the edge to the point that they staged a protest.
Charlie Rivers, who organized the event, spoke with Los Angeles Times about the event:
When it became time for the fans to show up and express their discontent, it seemed that they realized life is more important than sports. Instead of droves of people coming out, only a small crowd made the trek to the Staples Center to express their grievances. Like most things involving the NBA, the protest became fuel for fans to flame the franchise.
