Lakers Lose Out on the Best Head Coach Available
By Cem Yolbulan
The Los Angeles Lakers are looking for their next head coach. They are reportedly looking for an experienced coach after the first-time head coach Darvin Ham experiment failed. However, they need to act quickly if they want to land an elite play-caller because the market for head coaches is already moving fast.
In fact, the latest reporting by ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski suggests that the Lakers already lost quite possibly the best head coach available on the market. The Phoenix Suns, who announced the firing of Frank Vogel earlier on Thursday, are reportedly about to hire Mike Budenholzer.
Suns To Hire Potential Lakers Target Mike Budenholzer
Budenholzer is the Suns’ target and talks are expected to move quickly, sources tell ESPN. He’s been working to assemble a coaching staff for a return to a head coaching job and that process is also gathering momentum, sources said. https://t.co/PSWPi9C6Pr
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) May 9, 2024
Budenholzer has been one of the names the Lakers have been linked to over the past week. This made plenty of sense as Coach Bud was one of the few head coaches with championship pedigree on the market. He has extensive experience coaching superstars as he worked with Giannis Antetokounmpo in Milwaukee, where he led them to the 2021 championship.
If the Lakers are serious about wanting an experienced coach, they are likely not going to do better than Budenholzer. The former Hawks and Bucks coach has built dominant regular-season teams throughout his career. He is very adept at creating a system, getting his players to buy in, and constructing consistently elite defenses. He has been credited with turning Antetokounmpo and Brook Lopez into two of the best defensive players in the league.
That sounded like the ideal candidate for the Lakers. But, general manager Rob Pelinka and the Buss family now have to go back to the drawing board. They either have to hope that Ty Lue becomes available or opt for a less experienced head coach. Whichever direction they choose to go, they better act quickly before more teams start their head coaching search.
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