The Los Angeles Lakers made the expected move this week, firing head coach Darvin Ham and the entire coaching staff after losing in five games to the reigning champion Denver Nuggets. This is arguably the highest-profile job in the NBA, especially considering the roster of LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
Dave McMenamin hopped on SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt after the Dallas Mavericks' win over the Los Angeles Clippers to talk about the Lakers' season opener, saying: As we look to acquire talent, we're hoping that the pendulum will swing back toward more experienced candidates.''That spot… players that (the Lakers) are thinking about and thinking about, connecting with LeBron James. There is. Three of the names I've heard in the last six or seven hours: Tyronn Lue of the Clippers, Jason Kidd of the Mavericks. , the podcast “Mind the Game” with ESPN's JJ Redick.
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Coach Kidd spent two seasons as an assistant coach with the Lakers, including during their championship run in the bubble in 2020, leading the Dallas Mavericks to three series wins in the postseason. He's come under fire from Mavericks fans in recent years for his rotations and late-game decisions, but there's a reason the Lakers are potentially interested.
After the series ended, Clippers forward Tyronn Lue gave Kidd a lot of credit. “Hats off to Dallas,” Lue said. “(Jason) Kidd got his guys ready. They had a game plan, a really good game plan. They stuck with it and executed with it,” Lue McMenamin mentioned. It was a little ironic to see these two coaches play against each other since he was one of the other candidates. All three candidates mentioned were former Mavericks players.
Kidd and Lue have one year left on their current coaching contracts, but Kidd is “hopeful” to get an extension from the Mavericks. If he doesn't get the extension he seeks, could he leave a year early and return to Los Angeles? That likely won't be known until after the Mavericks' postseason.
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