Is the Los Angeles Lakers brand dead?

‘Good enough’ is just another way of saying, ‘I am content with meeting expectations.’ Typically, meeting expectations makes great business sense. Why should a company (or franchise) pour more money into products, employees, or customers than what’s absolutely necessary?  Here’s why: once employees (or players) know that ‘good enough’ satisfies the company’s expectations, apathy eventually sets in.

And that’s when your brand begins a slow and painful death.

Just look at the 2011 Los Angeles Lakers for a great example of how quickly a brand can deteriorate.

According to Forbes, the value of the Lakers franchise has more than doubled since 1998. The magazine estimated it at a league-leading $607 million in 2009. How much of this $607 million is brand equity? A lot.

In 2010, the Lakers were crowned world champions of the NBA in a seven-game series with the Boston Celtics. The Lakers reached this pinnacle of their sport for the 16th time in team history, second only, ironically, to the Celtics.

Fast forward to 2011: the Lakers were swept in four straight games to the Dallas Mavericks in the second round of the NBA playoffs. Poor defense (lack of effort), poor shot selection (bad strategy), and team apathy (no leadership / content with ‘good enough’) were all pinpointed as systemic issues for the Lakers in this series.

As if losing four straight to the Mavericks wasn’t bad enough, the Lakers further tarnished their brand by the way they lost game 4 – with flagrant fouls and a complete lack of sportsmanship. The sports world took notice as fans and media lit up the Internet with harsh criticism and condemnation of the Lakers players and coaches.

What a difference a single year makes in the history of brand!

So, is the Lakers brand dead? Doubtful.

Has the Lakers brand deteriorated? Most certainly.

Will the Lakers recover? Maybe. Vice president Magic Johnson calls for a complete overhaul of the roster and a new coach is taking over next season. It’s a start.

Regardless of the Lakers tactics, a complete turnaround will only take place with great leadership to re-ignite the franchise.  A franchise that previously had a passion for dreaming big, working hard, and improving themselves every single day.