Mitch Kupchak is unconcerned with the deadline Jim Buss declared for the Los Angeles Lakers to return to the Western Conference Finals.

In 2014, Buss said that if the Lakers weren’t there in “three to four years” he would step down. This season marks the third since that declaration.

“I’m not even sure what was said with certainty,” Kupchak said. “From my point of view, we’ve created a team that has a lot of young talent that can grow into, I believe, really good [players] and hopefully NBA players that can leave an imprint on this league. I think we’ve surrounded them with some older veterans that can help us win games.”

The Lakers won just 17 games last season and are expected to miss the playoffs again in 16-17.