Lakers Rumors: Latest Buzz on Tyronn Lue, Other Potential Coaching Candidates
The Los Angeles Lakers, who fell to 33-42 on Wednesday, are now simply trying to limp to the end of the regular season. They've long since been eliminated from the playoffs, and they no longer even have a chance to finish at .500.
Change is going to come for Los Angeles in the offseason, and it's likely to be at the head coaching spot. Though Luke Walton hasn't been relieved of his duties yet, he'll almost certainly be replaced shortly after the season ends.
The big question is who might replace him. According to Marc Stein of the New York Times, former Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue is at the top of the list.
"The name most frequently cited in league coaching circles is the very available Tyronn Lue," Stein wrote. "The presumed acceptance he would have from James, who is about to begin his first postseason as a spectator since 2005, would appear to give Lue a significant advantage over the rest of the field."
Bringing in a coach with experience handling James would make a lot of sense. He is a huge personality in the locker room, and Lue knows how to coexist with him.
The coach also knows what kind of role players to put around James to make him successful, something the Lakers failed to figure out in his first season with the franchise.
Lue coached James and the Cavaliers to three straight NBA Finals appearances.
However, it doesn't appear Los Angeles is committed to bringing in Lue at this point. At least, L.A. isn't tipping its hand.
According to Bill Oram of The Athletic, Lue recently called Walton to "assure him that the Lakers had not contacted him."
This doesn't mean the Lakers aren't interested in Lue. It only means they haven't directly gauged his interest.
Would Lue be interested in coaching James again? That remains unknown. What is known, though, is that former Brooklyn Nets and Milwaukee Bucks head coach Jason Kidd would apparently jump at the opportunity.
"If you ever have the opportunity to wear the purple and gold, you can't turn that down," Kidd said on ESPN's The Jump. "As a coach, as a player, because they're all about championships, and so they have a process. They have a young team. And then LeBron comes and kind of sped up things. And so he wants to win now."
ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski recently reported the Lakers would have interest in Kidd if and when Walton is shown the door:
However, ESPN's Stephen A. Smith has disputed the idea of Kidd landing the Lakers job:
"I've been told there's no way they're really considering Jason Kidd. He's not on their list. Now, that's what I'm hearing. But I also want to emphasize I'm not covering the NBA like that. As much as I cover these games or what have you, I'm not on the phones with these executives every single day as intimately as the great Adrian Wojnarowski is. So, I'm certainly not trying to cast any aspersions on any of his reporting. ... But in this particular story, the Lakers are saying, no, we're not interested in Jason Kidd. And they want to make sure that that's clear."
According to Stein, the Lakers are also interested in Doc Rivers and Rick Carlisle, though both are under contract with other teams—Rivers with the Los Angeles Clippers and Carlisle with the Dallas Mavericks.
Colin Cowherd of Fox Sports believes that interest in Carlisle has only been leaked "because it makes the Lakers seem more relevant, and they're not anymore."
The Lakers definitely aren't going to be relevant during the 2018-19 postseason. That could change next season, but if it does, it's going to happen with a new head coach at the helm.
