The Los Angeles Lakers won’t bring coach Byron Scott back next season after posting the worst record in franchise history in each of the two seasons since he was hired. Scott had the worst record of the 16 Lakers coaches who spent at least two seasons at the helm of the team. The Lakers waited until two attractive candidates were off the market before they made their move, and now they don’t have the opportunity to interview Tom Thibodeau or Scott Brook.
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Lakers felt an urgency to part ways with Byron Scott while top coaching candidates were still available: The Lakers wanted to ease into their decision on Byron Scott, let the emotions subside from a scarred season before plunging into whether he would stay or leave as their coach.
Los Angeles finished with the NBA’s second-worst record at 17-65 this season.
The Los Angeles Lakers endured its most forgettable season in franchise history, but not without casualties. Blatt will get a much easier start coaching a Lakers team that doesn’t have one player calling all the shots or four guys with massive egos.
Kobe Bryant isn’t the only Laker who won’t be returning for the 2016-17 season.
But at the same time it has been learnt that Lakers top bosses have not yet spoken to Walton. While we expect the process to be long and arduous, here’s a look at three candidates they should consider. “They have earned the right to take the time that they’ve needed to put together what they want to have out on the court, and if they can’t do that then we have to reexamine how things are going”.
Meanwhile, another former Laker may be in the mix to be LA’s next head coach.
Lakers fans may be particularly intrigued by Ollie, as the UConn coach has a solid relationship with impending free agent Kevin Durant. That means the Lakers will likely take less time than the almost four-month waiting period two years ago between Mike D’Antoni’s resignation in late April and Scott’s hire in late July. The Lakers have good young talent in D’Angelo Russell, Jordan Clarkson, Julius Randle, and Larry Nance Jr. – some of whom were not fond of Scott – but they need a couple of seasons of growth and strong coaching development to become the players they may be. He played for the Lakers during the 1980s and won three National Basketball Association titles alongside the likes of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson and James Worthy. Walton is very young at only 36 years of age and can really connect with the many young stars of the Lakers organization.
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“The Lakers did not dismiss Scott with his successor already in place, league sources said”. While she has final say within the organization, Jim Buss and Kupchak were given full authority to make this basketball choice.
