Vogel steps down as Lakers coach

The Lakers’ search for his replacement is expected to be wide-ranging and protracted, with no clear front-runner.

The Lakers concluded a disappointing 33-49 season Sunday with a 146-141 overtime victory over the Denver Nuggets, eliminated from ‘play-in’ tournament contention in the final week of the campaign.

Vogel, who signed an original three-year contract in 2019 and received a one-year extension through 2022-23 last offseason, said after Sunday’s game that he had not been told anything about his future with the team.

“I haven’t been told m— and I’m going to enjoy the game tonight, celebrate what these young men did in terms of making a splash, come back in this game and get the win, and we’ll deal with tomorrow, tomorrow,” he told reporters during his postgame media availability.

Vogel had to deal with injuries to stars such as LeBron James and Anthony Davis and a challenging roster rebuild that included limited shooters and athletes.

The Lakers finished the season in the bottom 10 in offensive and defensive efficiency, ranking 21st in defensive rating after finishing first in 2020-2021 and third in 2019-2020.

The Lakers lost 18 of 24 games after the All-Star Game break, which was worse than only the Portland Trail Blazers, Houston Rockets and Indiana Pacers.

Continuity was a constant challenge for Vogel and the Lakers this season. Los Angeles was the only team that did not have a single five-player lineup playing 100 minutes together, according to ESPN Stats & Information research. Despite starting the season with high expectations, the Lakers could only have James, Davis and Russell Westbrook on the court for 21 games. They went 11-10 in those games.

Vogel led the Lakers to an NBA championship in his first season in 2019-20, and kept the franchise as one of the league’s elite defensive teams during his first two seasons in Los Angeles. He is expected to be a candidate in future head coaching cycles elsewhere in the league.