Friday’s scheduled anti-Lakers protest in front of Staples Center did manage to attract a small, but enthusiastic crowd. At various points, they chanted “Fire Rambis” and “No Jason Kidd.” The rally’s stated intent was to get ESPN coverage and bring bad PR to owner Jeanie Buss. It did get some coverage, but the crowd numbered perhaps two dozen, though they weren’t lacking in enthusiasm.<doc-sep>They haven't seen their team in the NBA Playoffs for six years, their franchise has lost a legend as team president and couldn't land a seemingly perfect fit as a new head coach in the last two months, and their city's biggest star thinks his own employer is dysfunctional. So the Los Angeles Lakers fan base did what any reasonable fan base wanting to make a true statement would do -- gathered maybe a dozen people to chant outside Staples Center on a Friday afternoon. Protesters talked up the gathering this week, with a University of Arizona graduate headlining the downtown publicity stunt and throwing around words like "nepotism" to describe the Lakers' current state of affairs. And a handful of people did turn up at the intersection of South Figueroa and West 11th streets on Friday, shouting things like "Sell the team!" and "Fire Rambis!" -- a call for the job of Lakers senior adviser Kurt Rambis. Others apparently demanded the team land another "star" after whiffing on a deal to unite Anthony Davis with LeBron James. But to say the crowd was sparse is probably an understatement. Lakers fans may truly want change, but only a small contingent of them appeared to show up outside Staples Center to let the team know about it. Sounds a little symbolic of the whole Lakers organization as a whole, does it not?<doc-sep>Things have been better in Laker Land. That was both the message from fans as they protested, and the view of the rest of the NBA world as they watched those same fans somewhat embarrass themselves on a national scale. “My uncle had Magic, my older brother had Kobe, I’ve got LeBron; he’s brought me nothing,” a young Lakers fan screamed into an ESPN microphone without an ounce of self-awareness. “A change needs to happen right now. Get [Jeanie] Buss out here, they’re too incompetent for this city, and we don’t want it anymore.” A protest outside Staples Center that intended to bring “change” to the Lakers front office saw fans criticse Team President Jeanie Buss, adviser Kurt Rambis, and general manager Rob Pelinka. It was a movement formed on Reddit: “We will be holding a protest to garner ESPN Media Coverage. Voicing our displeasure of the front office. “Why? Jeannie hates bad PR. She don’t care about us, but cares what the media says. Point is to spin the narrative to the Talking Heads “Is Jeannie the opposite of her Father?” and have them talk.” The Lakers slumped to a disappointing finish in their first season with James, saw Magic Johnson resign, and Luke Walton fired. The fans have had to watch on recently as the front office missed out on hiring Monty Williams, and then Tyronn Lue. So understandably, things are far from positive. Nevertheless, it’s hard to see the protest itself doing much to change things.<doc-sep>Danny Moloshok/Associated Press LOS ANGELES — It started with a post on Reddit, a plan to protest the Los Angeles Lakers and the team's direction. On Friday, over 100 people gathered outside of Staples Center for an hour in a disorganized but passionate nonviolent outcry over the state of the franchise. "Hire LaVar Ball," yelled one of the students from Calabasas High School, skipping class for the day. "I'm missing physics right now," exclaimed one of his classmates. "I'd rather be doing this." "This is a dream come true," said diehard Los Angeles Clippers fan Clipper Darrell, who crashed the Lakers' party. "I can't believe how the tables have turned in L.A." Yes, there was plenty of nonsense worth ignoring. The Ball quote borders on violence to the senses, but within the group of diehard fans were some sound, rational arguments on the Lakers and their seeming lack of direction. "[Owner] Jeanie Buss will not listen to us directly, but she'll listen to you guys. She hates bad press," Santa Monica College student Austin Geller said. "She is a marketing 101 [expert]. It's all she lives for, and bad press is the worst thing you can have as a businessman or woman." A third of the crowd consisted of curious onlookers and gawkers (some from the Clippers' nearby office), and the number of protesters probably equaled the media members. But that's why the event was ultimately a success. Video Play Button Videos you might like "Everyone is aware of it," someone in the Lakers front office said of the protest. "It's being reported everywhere." Carlos Osorio/Associated Press The team has come under fire in recent days after contract negotiations with potential head coach Tyronn Lue fell through. Earvin "Magic" Johnson stepped down from his position of president of basketball operations on the final day of the regular season, announcing the move before telling LeBron James or Buss personally. "That's on Jeanie Buss and [general manager] Rob Pelinka," Geller said. "If you're going to sign LeBron to a four-year [deal], you're practically handing over the franchise key to him, so why not hire a coach that he's comfortable playing with? Why dip your feet halfway in?" Red Hot Chili Peppers bass player and longtime Lakers fan Flea wasn't at the protest, but on Thursday, he posted his thoughts on Instagram, writing, "There is a weakness, a malaise in the organization and it is breaking my heart." That message seemed to hit home, and while some of the protestors Friday were demanding the Buss family sell the team, many fretted more about the lack of public communication. Other than a couple of brief press releases and a Buss tweet last week after a dinner "catching up with @MagicJohnson," the Lakers have been relatively silent. "Jeanie is allowing the media to run the narrative, and I don't think the media is wrong by the way, but show some leadership," copywriter Michael Anapolsky said Friday. "If you can imagine working for a company where the leader just hides in the room the whole time, letting rumors run rampant, that is not the way a leader should run a company—and we're talking about a $3 billion organization." Calabasas student Jacob Samuel said: "The core problem is not establishing who is the leader. You don't know who is running the show. You don't know if it's Jeanie, you don't know [if it's Linda or Kurt Rambis], and then you don't know what Rob Pelinka is actually doing." After Johnson's curtain call, the Lakers opened up their facility to the media the following day for exit interviews; except former head coach Luke Walton (still on the job, albeit briefly) and Pelinka were nowhere to be found. Fans are generally unaware of how Buss' special adviser, Linda Rambis, and her husband, Kurt, came into power. "Kurt Rambis is playing a major role in the franchise's coaching search," ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski tweeted Wednesday. "He's emerging as a powerful voice in basketball operations." "She needs to get real basketball heads who are outside of the family business now," recent law school graduate Amir Khan said. "Jeanie was the Mother of Dragons. Everyone loved her, but it's been a complete 180 just in the last month or so." "I know she loves the Lakers. I know this is her life and she gives it her all. I want her to see everyone is giving her a bad name, a bad rep," he continued. "The evidence is showing that we're getting worse and worse. We can't close a deal with a coach." "I agree with why fans are upset ... ever since they've signed LeBron, they've done everything correctly in how to mess up. It's wild," Cal State Long Beach journalism major Bryan Aparicio said. "You want to believe in this front office, even going back to the debacle a couple of days ago with Ty Lue. You had him, he celebrates with a cake, a Laker cake and it just doesn't happen." So, what's the solution? "Hire LaVar Ball." No, seriously. "Bob Myers from Golden State has done an excellent job," Samuel said. "Myers, Masai Ujiri [of the Toronto Raptors] or Jerry West [with the Clippers]," Anapolsky answered. "Jerry West is here; he's going to be a Clipper for life," Clipper Darrell boasted. Barry Gutierrez/Associated Press But if Myers or Ujiri agreed to come, would the fans be willing to give up their first-round pick in June's draft (roughly 11th) in compensation to the Warriors or Raptors? "I would do that, easily. The first-round pick means nothing if it's not utilized properly," Samuel said. "I wouldn't give up that pick, but that's kind of my point," Anapolsky explained. "I wish there were people smarter than me in the front office. And that's my issue. I don't think there are people that are smarter than me in the front office." What if giving up the first-rounder got in the way of the Lakers acquiring Anthony Davis in trade from the New Orleans Pelicans?<doc-sep>
It’s been fun to dump on the Los Angeles Lakers recently. They limped to the finish line this season, ended LeBron James’ long NBA playoff streak, saw Magic Johnson submit his surprise resignation, and just days ago the team so badly botched contract negotiations with Ty Lue that he took himself out of the running to be the next head coach. So, business as usual, right? That’s precisely why fans are upset. The Lakers are a marquee franchise that seems to be run and managed like an unlicensed basement summer camp. One fan on Reddit was so sick and tired of the Lakers constantly tripping over their own feet that he decided to plan a fan protest. On Friday at noon in front of the Staples Center, fans would gather and loudly voice their displeasure. From Reddit: We will be holding a protest to garner ESPN Media Coverage. Voicing our displeasure of the front office. Why? Jeannie hates bad PR. She don’t care about us, but cares what the media says. Point is to spin the narrative to the Talking Heads “Is Jeannie the opposite of her Father?” and have them talk. The Lakers have had a rough few months, and fans are so upset that they staged a protest in front of the Staples Center. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill) Leaving aside the fact that the Lakers don’t actually have any team personnel at the Staples Center (which means Jeanie Buss, Rob Pelinka, and the whole Lakers gang won’t hear them yelling), it’s not a bad idea. Generating bad publicity for the team is definitely a way to show the PR-minded owner that things are not well in Lakers land. So how did things go? Well ... the protest happened. But while the organizer said he expected 60-80 people, it appears that the number was quite a bit lower. And the fans were a tad less enthusiastic than you might expect them to be. That protest by Lakers fans that’s supposed to take place at noon today? We are at it pic.twitter.com/FIUR4V1XIr — L.A. Times Sports (@latimessports) May 10, 2019 They did get slightly more amped up, though. Slightly. Story continues We've got "Fire Rambis!" chants at the Lakers protest outside Staples Center 😬 (via @latimessports)pic.twitter.com/gTz9k6bEW7 — Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) May 10, 2019 Signs at the Lakers fans protests include a crying LeBron James and a mugshot of Jason Kidd pic.twitter.com/fhJcZYI3Kt — L.A. Times Sports (@latimessports) May 10, 2019 Clipper Darrell stopped by just to thumb his nose at Lakers fans. Clipper Darrell just showed up to take his victory lap at the Lakers protest. pic.twitter.com/5f8twCOQaE — Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) May 10, 2019 You have to imagine it was hard for Clipper Darrell to resist doing that after seeing how few people were actually gathered. The Lakers "protest" is looking extremely sad 😭 (via @mester_mark)pic.twitter.com/WDGHdOuVVE — Yahoo Sports NBA (@YahooSportsNBA) May 10, 2019 There might be more cameras there than actual fan protesters. A protest is a protest no matter how many people show up. The fans who were there got to chant loudly about their unhappiness, people paid attention, and Jeanie Buss likely knows it happened. But considering that maybe 30 people were yelling in front of an empty Staples Center where no Lakers front-office people work, this protest feels like the Lakers of sports protests: big promises, problematic results. But at least the protest brought joy to this Phoenix Suns fan, gleefully watching the action while casually snacking on a bag of peanuts. Bask in it, Suns Guy. Soak it in. Right now, your team is not the most embarrassing in the NBA. And for Suns fans, that’s a reason to celebrate. More from Yahoo Sports: