The Los Angeles Lakers exceeded expectations during the 2024-25 campaign by reaching the 50-win mark, winning the Pacific Division title, and clinching the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference Playoffs in JJ Redick's first season as the team's head coach.
In addition to enjoying a successful season, the Purple and Gold set themselves up for life after LeBron James as well, whenever that ultimately happens, by acquiring Luka Doncic in a blockbuster trade with the Dallas Mavericks that stunned the basketball world.
Now, the architect behind this team has been rewarded for the work he has done to set Los Angeles up for success in the future and the here and now.
Rob Pelinka has signed a contract extension that lines up with the four-year deal the franchise gave to Redick during the summer of 2024 to take over as Los Angeles' next head coach, per Shams Charania of ESPN. In addition to the extension, Pelinka was given a promotion as well as he was named the team's president of basketball operations after serving as the vice president of basketball operations since 2020.
Since taking over for Mitch Kupchak as the team's GM in March of 2017, Pelinka has enjoyed a great deal of success during his tenure as, in addition to winning the NBA Finals in 2020, the Lakers have an overall regular season record of 267-205 as well as a postseason record of 31-21.
The work he has done since 2017 to make the Lakers a factor in the championship discussion again, coupled with completing the Doncic trade to give the franchise its next generational superstar, was more than enough to convince Jeanie Buss that Pelinka was the right man to continue directing this ship for years to come.