Lakers GM Rob Pelinka Gives A Cringe Worthy Speech, Attempt To Motivate Fails

Since the Lakers won the championship in 2020, Rob Pelinka has not done a good job by just about any criterion. He twice attempted to fully rebuild the team around LeBron James and Anthony Davis while failing to appear to understand the lessons of what worked for that championship team.

Instead of surrounding LeBron and AD with shooters, he has primarily added non-shooters, notably Russell Westbrook. This has led to a crowded offence and a club that missed the playoffs (and even the play-in round) last year and is off to a 0-5 start this year. To assure continuity in the team, Pelinka was nonetheless covertly signed to a 5-year deal this offseason.

Rob Pelinka’s Failed Attempt To Motivate Players

The latest episode of Backstage: Lakers, which gives viewers a behind-the-scenes look at team meetings and more, aired on Spectrum Sportsnet just hours after the Lakers’ defeat to the Timberwolves on Friday, putting them at 0-5 overall. In that episode, Pelinka gives a cringe speech to the players about carrying a chip on their shoulder and changing “I” to “us” in all situations. He does this rather literally by changing the “I” in “chip” to the Larry O’Brien trophy.

Literally reminded people of “The Office.” A comedian named CJ Toledano shared the video of Pelinka giving his speech on Twitter, but with the cast of “The Office” instead. The edit was spot on since both the real NBA players and the imaginary Dunder Mifflin paper firm employees responded in the same way.

This kind of motivating strategy is typically used in college programs, where it would be met with lots of eye rolls, but trying to get an experienced team fired up with it is especially comical (or cringeworthy, depending on your viewpoint). I like the cuts where the guys are just staring blankly at Pelinka and contemplating how much longer this will all go on. The good news for Rob is that based on this season’s early performances, it seems like it was well received, and the team truly bought in.

 

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