The Lakers paraded a relatively healthy lineup against the Bulls on Sunday, a veritable luxury given their frequent bouts with injury throughout their 2024-25 campaign. Including the monumental trade that saw them acquiring Luke Dončić and letting go of Anthony Davis, the roster instability has had them practically adjusting on the fly in every outing. Given the extent of the scrambling they have had to do, it’s a wonder they headed into the homestand with a respectable slate in the extremely competitive Western Conference.

All the same, the Lakers fully expected a win at Crypto.com Arena. After all, they were playing hosts against the lowly Bulls, embarrassed owners of 40 losses with a full three-fifths by double figures. Instead, they wound up being chased off the floor in grand fashion. And so badly did they perform that head coach JJ Redick felt compelled to empty his bench with half the fourth quarter still to be negotiated. Never mind that a 20-point deficit remained surmountable considering the pace and invariable reliance on the three in the modern game.

Clearly, Redick had seen enough to conclude that the Lakers were out of it, literally and figuratively. They had already coughed up a whopping 21 turnovers by then, with a fair number of the sloppy variety. And their evident lack of focus and effort was even worse on the other end of the court. Time and time again, the Bulls either wound up with open tries from beyond the arc or glaring mismatches in the paint. The scrambling defense that became their calling card since the turn of the year was all but nonexistent.

Perhaps the Lakers simply caught a perfect storm, needing to get returning cogs LeBron James and Rui Hachimura to fit in as part of an increasingly heliocentric offense with Dončić at the helm. Not coincidentally, the latter was nothing short of spectacular at the start of the set-to, but seemed to get relegated to the background in the second half. Needless to say, they will have their work cut out for them as they navigate the remainder of the regular season.

If there’s any consolation, it’s that Redick and lead assistants Nate McMillan and Scott Brooks have seen enough success to plot a winning formula to go deep in the playoffs. Until then, though, they need to find the right balance between aiming for short-term gains and ensuring longer-term cohesiveness. Else, they run the risk of falling woefully short of potential. Are they bona fide contenders? Or are they paper tigers? The next three weeks figure to provide the answer.

Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and human resources management, corporate communications, and business development.