Los Angeles Lakers: How David Fizdale can fix the mess they’re in
By Keith Rivas
Rumor has had it that the Los Angeles Lakers may replace Luke Walton with David Fizdale, formerly of the Memphis Grizzlies.
If the Los Angeles Lakers still plan on moving on from Luke Walton anytime soon in light of comments from LaVar Ball and an awkward silence from the front office until recently on social media, the move might be better late than never.
Changing coaches at this point in the season might be the shift in the wind the team needs to deter the elder Ball from making as many comments as he has been, but it might have a negative effect on his son, who they should be a little more focused on and concerned with.
Kyle Kuzma has taken the route of backing Luke Walton without mincing words while this has all been going on, however Lonzo Ball wasn’t as specific with his response to what his dad had to say about the coaching in Los Angeles.
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Getting a new coach would appear to be a move to appease Ball instead of doing what the front office may actually feel is the best course of action for the franchise.
The last thing that the Los Angeles Lakers need to do right now is divide the locker room. Instead, the focus needs to be playing well together collectively and ensuring that the chemistry within the young core really is where it needs to be.
Fizdale would seem like the kind of guy that you would generally want to go toe-to-toe with LaVar Ball. While Luke Walton has taken the high road with a lot of the comments being sent his way from his point guard’s father, based on work history, Fizdale wouldn’t likely let the comments simmer over.
As we saw while he was with Memphis — in fact, probably the larger reason that he was let go from the team — Fizdale isn’t afraid to bench anybody and that would definitely translate to the purple and gold and their situation with the Ball family.
This, of course, all ultimately depends on what the Lakers’ motives really are. If they’d rather silence LaVar Ball, then fire Luke Walton and give Ball a taste of his own medicine, as it’d be almost certain Fizdale would.
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Or, keep Lonzo and the young core in mind and let Walton ride the storm out for now. It can go either way at this point, and whatever decision they make regarding this will also affect how their free agency hunt plays out.