After University of Connecticut head coach Dan Hurley said no to a generous offer made to him by the Los Angeles Lakers, the nagging issue of whether the Lakers are really a world-class basketball franchise has come up yet again.
Perhaps Hurley saying no had everything to do with Hurley and nothing to do with the Lakers’ deficiencies. However, his decision has made the organization look bad and inadequate once again.
The situation has reminded some of 2019, when the Lakers courted Tyronn Lue, who had coached LeBron James to an NBA championship in 2016 while with the Cleveland Cavaliers. The two sides haggled over the length of the contract offered, and Lue said no.
Lue would instead join the Los Angeles Clippers, and he has been their head coach for the last four seasons. While the Clippers have failed to reach the NBA Finals and have routinely crashed and burned early in the playoffs despite having Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, they haven’t hesitated to pay Lue. In fact, they just gave him a generous extension that will reportedly pay him approximately $14 million a year.
Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report wrote that not only do the Lakers have the reputation of being “very frugal,” but they also lack some modern resources that ultimately help coaches out.
Via Bleacher Report:
“The general opinion around the league is that the Lakers have a very frugal front office,” Pincus wrote. “The Clippers spare no expense with a massive staff, but the Lakers’ sparse front office lacks common features, such as a pro personnel department. Outside of the scouting department for the draft, L.A. doesn’t have scouts spread throughout the league watching NBA talent on a nightly basis in person like other franchises.”
Lakers insider Anthony Irwin went a little bit further.
Via Lakers Daily:
“Sources say the Lakers are seen as a skeleton crew that does not provide its coaches with proper resources.
“‘It just isn’t a good job,’ one NBA assistant coach said. ‘They negotiate as if it’s some grand honor to coach the Lakers, but the reality is you’re looking at a couple years before you’re going to get scapegoated. That’s obviously the case with most coaches, but the Lakers in particular don’t seem to value the position.'”
Some would blame James and Klutch Sports for the fact that head coaches haven’t lasted long for the Lakers in recent years. Their next head coach will be the fourth man to occupy that job since James arrived six years ago.
On the other hand, owner Jeanie Buss isn’t wealthy by NBA standards. Even her father, the late Dr. Jerry Buss, had to take measures to control costs during his 34 years as the Lakers’ owner, although they did win 10 world championships during that time.