With the NBA arms race in full swing, the Los Angeles Lakers made a splash with their late-season addition of Andre Drummond.
Drummond’s arrival was supposed to give Frank Vogel the Big 3 L.A. needed alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis to compete with the other powers in the league. But, unfortunately, his underwhelming performance wound up being a major talking point in the team’s disappointing finish to the season.
Several factors played into both Drummond and the Lakers not being able to meet expectations. However, it appears the former was not happy about how his skill set was utilized.
Drummond recently responded to a comment on an Instagram post regarding his poor showing by criticizing Vogel for the lack of playing time via DribbleCity:
Andre Drummond said if he would play more he would dominate like Lopez & Ayton 😳 pic.twitter.com/ET0vXBE9g9
— 🏀 (@dribblecity) July 6, 2021
Drummond started every game he played for the Purple and Gold, averaging just 11.9 points and 10.2 rebounds in 24.8 minutes per game during the regular season. He saw his playing time dip to 21 minutes during the postseason and was sidelined completely during the Game 6 loss against the Phoenix Suns that eliminated the Lakers from the playoffs.
It is clear that being benched in a game where Davis was forced to come out due to injury did not sit well with Drummond. His comments regarding Vogel’s decision are hardly a positive indicator that he plans to stick around this offseason.
Although Drummond’s stint may have been disappointing, he has good reason to be optimistic about a potential resurgence with the right team. After all, he is a two-time All-Star that has led the league in rebounding four times.
The 27-year-old is still in his prime and will likely be weighing out his options on the market this offseason. His criticism of Vogel indicates that Drummond will put a priority on playing time in free agency.