Magic Johnson stepping down as Lakers President

#2
#2
The Lakers are a mess. I love them dearly, and want them to be okay. But there is ZERO organization. There is a "family" and the incest of it, and keeping it in the family has ruined this team. Magic should have never been handed the keys to it, but he was, because he was "Magic." Rob Pelinka should have been let go a long time ago, but he wasn't, because he was Kobe's agent, and Kobe is family. Luke Walton was a promising coach, but he shouldn't have been hired, but was, because he was "family." And now they're thinking about bringing on Tyronn Lue, who is "family."

Look, the fact is, the Lakers are one of the absolute TOP jobs in the world. They are the most recognizable brand out there, with only Boston and New York competing as the most historically relevant franchises. There is not a single executive that would not salivate at the chance to at least talk to the Lakers.

These hires mean EVERYTHING right now. Magic stepping down was great. And Luke needed to get out of the situation. Sacramento will land him as coach, and he and the Kings will be better off for it.

But, honestly? Jeanie needs to get outside of the Laker "Family," hire a guy who knows how to build a contender, and stay out of it. Here's what I would do:

1) Hire Bob Myers from Golden State. Option 2 is Toronto's Ujiri. Both know how to build a solid roster and manage multiple superstars and cap space.

2) Let whoever is hired have full control. Meaning, fire Pelinka and hire a GM who is not hated by the entire league.

3) Hire a coach who has had success already. Preferably Quin Snyder from Utah. Small market coach who has done an amazing job even after losing a superstar (Heyward).

4) Trade LeBron. I have not seen a single thing this year that makes me think that LeBron is going to be good for Lakers basketball. He is too focused on his Hollywood career, and not on basketball. He is not engaging with the team, his body language sucks, and I just think that you should trade him while the value is still there. I know he's LeBron, but he has been more about LeBron than the Lakers. I'd love to see us trade for another star or draft pick, and get what we can from him. Ideal situation would be to trade him to Chicago if they wound up with the #1 pick, and get Zion. Then you have Zion, and the cap space to sign 2 of the 5K's (Kyrie, Kevin Durant, Klay, Kemba Walker, or Kahwi). You give me Kemba, Kahwi, Brandon Ingram, Kyle Kuzma, and Zion Williamson, and that's a team I can live with. This team needs some players who will play defense and who will put butts in the seats. Nobody gets excited about seeing Lance Stephenson trot out there.

The Lakers are set to explode right now, or implode. Depends on the hires made. But LeBron does not need to be part of the team going forward. He is a great player. But his interest in LA is not about winning championships. His interest in LA is life after basketball. He's just earning a paycheck.

Just my opinion, agree or disagree.
 
#3
#3
Somebody made the point that the Lakers could flip the narrative by hiring Becky Hammond as their head coach. All the bad press for Lebron and the Lakers would get drowned out by the good press from hiring a woman (who is qualified). Lebron could go from coach killer to the first superstar to play and succeed with a female coach.
 
#4
#4
TNHopeful505 said:
The Lakers are a mess. I love them dearly, and want them to be okay. But there is ZERO organization. There is a "family" and the incest of it, and keeping it in the family has ruined this team. Magic should have never been handed the keys to it, but he was, because he was "Magic." Rob Pelinka should have been let go a long time ago, but he wasn't, because he was Kobe's agent, and Kobe is family. Luke Walton was a promising coach, but he shouldn't have been hired, but was, because he was "family." And now they're thinking about bringing on Tyronn Lue, who is "family."

Look, the fact is, the Lakers are one of the absolute TOP jobs in the world. They are the most recognizable brand out there, with only Boston and New York competing as the most historically relevant franchises. There is not a single executive that would not salivate at the chance to at least talk to the Lakers.

These hires mean EVERYTHING right now. Magic stepping down was great. And Luke needed to get out of the situation. Sacramento will land him as coach, and he and the Kings will be better off for it.

But, honestly? Jeanie needs to get outside of the Laker "Family," hire a guy who knows how to build a contender, and stay out of it. Here's what I would do:

1) Hire Bob Myers from Golden State. Option 2 is Toronto's Ujiri. Both know how to build a solid roster and manage multiple superstars and cap space.

2) Let whoever is hired have full control. Meaning, fire Pelinka and hire a GM who is not hated by the entire league.

3) Hire a coach who has had success already. Preferably Quin Snyder from Utah. Small market coach who has done an amazing job even after losing a superstar (Heyward).

4) Trade LeBron. I have not seen a single thing this year that makes me think that LeBron is going to be good for Lakers basketball. He is too focused on his Hollywood career, and not on basketball. He is not engaging with the team, his body language sucks, and I just think that you should trade him while the value is still there. I know he's LeBron, but he has been more about LeBron than the Lakers. I'd love to see us trade for another star or draft pick, and get what we can from him. Ideal situation would be to trade him to Chicago if they wound up with the #1 pick, and get Zion. Then you have Zion, and the cap space to sign 2 of the 5K's (Kyrie, Kevin Durant, Klay, Kemba Walker, or Kahwi). You give me Kemba, Kahwi, Brandon Ingram, Kyle Kuzma, and Zion Williamson, and that's a team I can live with. This team needs some players who will play defense and who will put butts in the seats. Nobody gets excited about seeing Lance Stephenson trot out there.

The Lakers are set to explode right now, or implode. Depends on the hires made. But LeBron does not need to be part of the team going forward. He is a great player. But his interest in LA is not about winning championships. His interest in LA is life after basketball. He's just earning a paycheck.

Just my opinion, agree or disagree.
Click to expand...

What about the fact that they were 15-8 when everybody was healthy? Or that they were like -165 without him and +1 with him after he came back from injury? He may not be focused, he may be struggling to build trust with teammates, etc. but there were plenty of positives to see.

That being said, trade Lebron if you can get equal value back.
 
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#5
#5
n_huffhines said:
Somebody made the point that the Lakers could flip the narrative by hiring Becky Hammond as their head coach. All the bad press for Lebron and the Lakers would get drowned out by the good press from hiring a woman (who is qualified). Lebron could go from coach killer to the first superstar to play and succeed with a female coach.
Click to expand...
People would destroy her if they lose with LeBron. That would be terrible for her. I doubt the league would want the first female coach to be perceived as an ineffectual powerless failure when they lose. And if they won it would be all due to LeBron.
 
#6
#6
k-town_king said:
People would destroy her if they lose with LeBron. That would be terrible for her. I doubt the league would want the first female coach to be perceived as an ineffectual powerless failure when they lose. And if they won it would be all due to LeBron.
Click to expand...

Most people, and especially the media, will give her every possible pass. Who cares what the league wants, they wouldn't block the hire anyway.
 
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