The LA Lakers fail to advance beyond the play-in round or lose early in the postseason, though, Vogel's fate appears to be sealed.
Malik Monk has been so successful in Los Angeles that both sides are hoping to make this a long-term partnership.
LeBron James acknowledged some similarities between him and Malone, especially in the way that they both took excellent care of their bodies.
The injury occurred when Anthony Davis jumped to catch a pass and landed on the foot of Jazz center Rudy Gobert.
Dumping Vogel would be a drastic step, but with few other avenues toward improvement, it's one the Lakers have little choice but to make.
Los Angeles Lakers coach Frank Vogel has pulled Russell Westbrook out of several games late in the fourth quarter.
The Houston Rockets were interested in a potential Russell Westbrook-for-John Wall swap at the trade deadline.
Luka Doncic went 9 of 21 and looked significantly less sharp than in most previous games during his monthlong scoring tear.
The LA Lakers have to hope that these moves will give them a bit of a boost, because they need whatever they can get right now.
The Lakers are currently the ninth seed and find themselves only 2 1/2 games ahead of Portland, who has the same record as New Orleans.