He added: “They’re losing one of the best humans in the N.B.A. They’re losing a guy who knows the game as well as anybody I’ve met. They’re losing somebody who players believe in.”

Walton, the son of the Hall of Fame center Bill Walton, was working with an ill-conceived roster that lacked depth, defense and perimeter shooting. Still, the pressure was on him before the season even began. Once the Lakers got off to a slow start, Johnson chastised Walton in a closed-door meeting, raising speculation that Walton was already on the hot seat.

Questions about Walton’s job security persisted throughout the season as he shuffled rotations and lineups, searching for solutions that never materialized.

Walton refused to make excuses — publicly, he was a voice of unwavering optimism amid a sea of discontent — but it hardly helped that the Lakers were troubled by injuries, especially at point guard.

Then there was James, who had been incredibly durable in his 16-year career. But during the Lakers’ Christmas Day game against the Warriors, he limped off the court with a strained groin and missed the next 17 games. Without him, the Lakers struggled. The hope was that they could regain their footing once he returned, but he was not the cure-all anyone imagined. The Lakers continued to lose with James back in the lineup, even though he said he had “activated” himself for a playoff push.

It had become clear by then, however, that the Lakers did not have any discernible chemistry, especially after Johnson and Rob Pelinka, their general manager, tried and failed to acquire the All-Star center Anthony Davis from the New Orleans Pelicans ahead of February’s trade deadline. (It was no coincidence, perhaps, that Davis and James shared an agent, Rich Paul.) The Lakers were willing to send the Pelicans several of their promising young players, including Kyle Kuzma, Brandon Ingram and Lonzo Ball, but were rebuffed in their attempts to swing a blockbuster deal.

The result was a team that seemed distracted at best and fractured at worst. Before long, the Lakers were officially eliminated from playoff contention. James did not dress for the final six games of the season.