Just days after Magic Johnson’s stunning announcement during an impromptu press conference that he was stepping down as President of Basketball Operations, the Lakers have now fired Head Coach Luke Walton.
Walton’s Lakers missed the playoffs and ended the season as the 24th ranked offense and 13th ranked defense in the NBA. While Walton’s Lakers’ tenure ends in unsuccessful fashion, its difficult to attribute all the failures to Walton. The Lakers free agency moves after LeBron’s acquisition were suspect, the roster was plagued by injuries and then of course there’s LeBron James who if we’re keeping count just got the 4th head coach of his career sent to the breadlines.
Ty Lue is a “strong frontrunner” as Walton’s replacement, and why not? It’s exactly what the King wants. And what the King wants, he gets.