During a recent episode of the show ‘Undisputed,’ host Skip Bayless asked Byron Scott, a three-time NBA champion, about the vacant head coach position for the Los Angeles Lakers. In his response, Scott suggested that LeBron James should be considered as head coach for the Lakers.
“My recommendation for the next Laker coach, and not out of the eight or nine names that I’ve heard, his name wasn’t on there, is to make LeBron the coach. It’s obvious to me, at least, that he’s making a lot of decisions in this organization. From a coaching standpoint to a player standpoint. So if you’re going to allow him to make those decisions, sit on the bench and make those decisions as well. Be the head coach. The only person LeBron is going to trust is himself. And since you’re already making a lot of those decisions anyway, why not put him in that seat.” Byron Scott said.
Byron Scott Advocates for JJ Redick as Lakers’ Coach
Recently, the Los Angeles Lakers fired all of their coaching staff, including the head coach Darvin Ham, after the disappointing loss against the Denver Nuggets in the 1st round of the playoff series.
Despite Anthony Davis and LeBron James’ combined efforts, the Lakers were eliminated early in the playoffs. Anthony Davis and LeBron James had a remarkable season, with James averaging 25.7 points, 8.3 assists, and 7.3 rebounds in 71 games, and Davis averaging 24.7 points, 12.6 rebounds, and 3.5 assists in 76 games.
LeBron James has had ten head coaches, many of whom were famous during his NBA career. During a podcast, Byron Scott suggested that JJ Redick would be the most compatible head coach for LeBron James. Scott explained that James is at ease with Redick, citing a recent podcast episode that the two did together as evidence of their excellent rapport.
LeBron James may have handpicked Tyronn Lue to become the next Lakers coach should the franchise move on from Darvin Ham.
The Los Angeles Lakers saw another disappointing season come to an end, and certain NBA executives are speculating that LeBron James’ former coach Tyronn Lue may be a prime candidate to steer the franchise as its next head coach.
Lue coached James during his second stint with the Cleveland Cavaliers for two-and-a-half seasons from 2016 to 2018. The duo reached the finals in all three years and won the team’s lone title in 2016.
A potential marriage between the Lakers and Lue is hinged on a decision on Darvin Ham’s tenure with the squad and the Los Angeles Clippers possibly making a change after four seasons and a Western Conference Finals finish in 2021.
NBA execs sound off on LeBron James’ influence over a potential coaching change
Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
Save for a championship in 2020 and an NBA Cup win earlier this season, the Lakers has had a tumultuous run since LeBron James joined the team in 2018. Since then, the franchise had had three coaches mentors steer the squad: Luke Walton, Frank Vogel, and Ham.
LeBron James may seek to reunite with his former Cavaliers head coach, two NBA executives told Heavy Sports. The Lakers previously had the chance to hire their former point guard as their next head coach in 2019, but muffed contract negotiations, and Lue eventually joined their cross-tunnel rival Clippers in 2020.
“There are a lot of factors there, Ty [Tyronn Lue] is under contract [for the 2024-25 season] but if the Clippers decide they need some changes, he could be one of the changes,” a league executive said in the Heavy Sports report. “LeBron [James] can be a free agent. If Ty is out there, it is pretty clear that’s who LeBron wants.”
Another executive said LeBron James has handpicked Tyronn Lue, out of his previous mentors, as a potential candidate for the head coaching job with the Lakers. However, the executive noted that the notion of James swaying influence over personnel changes has been blown out of proportion.
“If it was all up to LeBron, he’d have Ty Lue as his coach and he would do that with the Lakers,” an Eastern Conference executive said. “That’s his guy. Out of all the coaches LeBron has ever had, the one he singles out is Ty. Now he is in a position where he has free agency on his side and he can maybe force the team to do something to get his guy if he gets fired.”
“I think LeBron has a reputation for pulling strings and dictating moves, and that gets way overblown. Anyone who has worked with him will say, he is easy to work with. He has opinions and he will let you know and, really, you’d be crazy not to ask him his opinion. But he is not a puppet master like some people think,” the executive added. “But if Ty Lue is available, I’d be really shocked if he did not push the Lakers to get him.”
With the Lakers failing to make it past the Western Conference Finals in 2023 and the first round this season, rumored coaching candidates besides Lue include former Milwaukee Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer and former NBA veteran JJ Redick.