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Lakers Rumors: Former Blazers HC Terry Stotts Interviews for Head Coaching Job
May 7, 2022
The Los Angeles Lakers have interviewed former Portland Trail Blazers head coach Terry Stotts for their vacant head coaching position, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
The news comes after The Athletic and Stadium's Shams Charania reported earlier this week the franchise had requested to interview Toronto Raptors assistant coach Adrian Griffin and Milwaukee Bucks assistant Darvin Ham.
Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times reported in April that Stotts, Ham and Steve Clifford were among the candidates to become L.A.'s next head coach.
While the franchise is beginning interviews, the process is expected to take some time. Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka told reporters in April that the team's head coaching search would be "thorough and methodical."
Stotts has 13 years of head coaching experience but has coached in the NBA since the 2020-21 season. The 64-year-old most recently served as head coach of the Trail Blazers from 2012-21, leading the franchise to eight straight playoff appearances in that span.
However, the Trail Blazers failed to ever make a deep postseason run with Stotts as head coach, and he was fired after Portland fell to the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the 2021 postseason.
In his nine seasons at the helm, Portland went 402-318 in the regular season and 22-40 in the playoffs.
Stotts was also head coach of the Atlanta Hawks from 2002-04 and the Milwaukee Bucks from 2005-07.
The Lakers are searching for a new head coach after firing Frank Vogel following an 11th-place finish in the Western Conference. L.A. had a wildly disappointing season, finishing with a 33-49 record.
While the Purple and Gold struggled with injuries to Anthony Davis and LeBron James throughout the season, the acquisition of Russell Westbrook turned out to be a bust, which is part of the reason to team failed to build chemistry.