The Toronto Raptors are in the NBA Finals, and the L.A. Lakers are not ? for a reason

They made providing megastar Kobe Bryant with late-career comfort a priority, invested in big men whose skills didn’t serve the league’s reorientation toward three-point shooting, and failed to update their analytical or training approaches in the slightest.After spending several years lost in the wilderness, the Lakers finally fired longtime GM Mitch Kupchak two off-seasons ago.That gave Buss the opportunity to take a gamble on some outside front office talent to modernize the franchise. He eventually quit because, he told the media in a wild, jaw-dropping press conference in April, he was totally miserable and would prefer to limit his relationship with the NBA to firing off complimentary tweets about NBA players instead.Over the Lakers' long off-season, Jeanie Buss has time to consider taking the bold steps her organization really needs.Pelinka was even stranger: He didn’t really feel it necessary to consult his scouting staff when running drafts or making decisions about free agency, according to ESPN’s reporting, and constantly showed up at pregame and halftime meetings — a faux pas that made players feel like they were constantly being evaluated for possible trades.