Every year the good folks at ESPN come out with their Ultimate Standings list, a ranking of every team in the four major North American sports (NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL). In recent years the Lakers have begun to slide down the rankings and that continued this year.
In the 2016 edition of ESPN’s Ultimate Standings, the Lakers came in at 109th overall out of 122 teams and 26th among the 30 NBA teams. Baxter Holmes had this to say about the state of the franchise:
“Coming off their worst season in franchise history and after missing the playoffs three straight seasons, is it any wonder the rebuilding Lakers continue their Ultimate Standings slide?