Category: Los Angeles Lakers Blog

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Lakers remove Magic Johnson from staff listings

Lakers remove Magic Johnson from staff listings

The Los Angeles Lakers have announced today that Hall of Famer Earvin “Magic” Johnson has asked the team to remove his honorary title of Vice President, and to remove his name from the team staff directory in publications and other sources. Their explanation is as follows:

The change is being made in hopes of clarifying any confusion over Johnson’s involvement with or representation of the team.

“Earvin will always be a revered and beloved member of the Lakers family, but he does not have a position or role with the organization at this time,” said team spokesman John Black. “He is not an advisor or a consultant, and his opinions, comments and social media posts are solely his, and do not represent or reflect those of Lakers ownership or management. Hopefully this will eliminate any confusion over this issue in the future.”

Brian Shaw may become Lakers assistant coach

Brian Shaw may become Lakers assistant coach

Warriors assistant coach Luke Walton will become head coach of the Lakers once the Warriors’ playoff run concludes. Golden State is currently tied 1-1 with the Thunder in the Western Conference Finals, with Game 3 on Sunday.

According to the Los Angeles Times, Shaw may soon become Walton’s lead assistant:

Shaw’s experience as a head coach, an assistant coach and as a championship player were the primary reasons why Walton wanted him on his staff, according to several NBA officials who are not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.

Shaw won three championships with the Lakers in 2000, 2001 and 2002, when he played on the Shaquille O’Neal-Kobe Bryant teams.

Shaw has previous head coaching experience and is considered one of the better assistants available.

2016-17 Lakers preseason schedule

2016-17 Lakers preseason schedule

It’s early, but the Los Angeles Lakers preseason schedule for the 2016-17 season was released today. The preseason line-up includes two games against the Golden State Warriors, in addition to contests against the Sacramento Kings, Denver Nuggets, Portland Trail Blazers, and Phoenix Suns.

Lakers preseason also includes two games being played in the newly opened T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Full 2016-17 Los Angeles Lakers preseason schedule

DATE OPPONENT CITY ARENA TIME

October 4 vs. Sacramento Anaheim, CA Honda Center 7:00pm

October 7 vs. Denver Los Angeles, CA STAPLES Center 7:30pm

October 9 vs. Denver Ontario, CA Citizens Business Bank Arena 6:30pm

October 11 vs. Portland Los Angeles, CA STAPLES Center 7:30pm

October 13 vs. Sacramento Las Vegas, NV T-Mobile Arena 7:30pm

October 15 vs. Golden State Las Vegas, NV T-Mobile Arena 7:00pm

October 19 vs. Golden State San Diego, CA Valley View Casino Center 7:00pm

October 21 vs. Phoenix Anaheim, CA Honda Center 7:00pm

Report: Lakers fire Byron Scott

This is a summer of change for the Los Angeles Lakers. Although they already have some young talent, the saying goodbye to Kobe Bryant truly marks the start of a new era. And the first major move in that era is, according to reports, to say goodbye to head coach Byron Scott. Here’s the Los Angeles Daily News blog reporting:

Report: Lakers fire Byron Scott

After overseeing the Lakers finish with their worst record in franchise history for two consecutive years, Byron Scott will not coach the Lakers in the 2016-17 season, according to a source familiar with the situation.

It is not immediately clear who will replace Scott or if any of his assistants will be retained, including Paul Pressey, Mark Madsen, Larry Lewis and Thomas Scott. The Lakers lost out on potential coaching candidates after mulling Scott’s future for the week. Those possibilities included Tom Thibodeau (Minnesota) and Scott Brooks (Washington). Possible replacements for Scott could include Golden State Warriors assistant Luke Walton, former Rockets and Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy, UConn coach Kevin Ollie and San Antonio Spurs assistant Ettore Messina.

Ryan Gomes named D-League Impact Player of the Year

Ryan Gomes named D-League Impact Player of the Year

Los Angeles D-Fenders forward Ryan Gomes was today named the 2015-16 NBA Development League Impact Player of the Year, as voted on by the league’s 19 head coaches. The award recognizes a player who joined an NBA D-League team after Nov. 26, 2015, and made the greatest contribution to his team’s success following that in-season acquisition.

Gomes (6-7, 245, Providence) joined the D-Fenders, the NBA D-League affiliate of the Los Angeles Lakers, on Jan. 7, 2016, and played his first game on Jan. 9, 19 games into the 2015-16 season. He appeared in the team’s next 31 games (28 starts), averaging 18.2 points, 8.1 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 32.0 minutes. He scored in double figures 28 times, including two 30-plus point outings, and recorded nine double-doubles.

Gomes helped the D-Fenders to a 27-23 regular-season record and the fourth overall seed in the NBA D-League Western Conference Playoffs. The team defeated the Reno Bighorns 2-1 in the Conference Semifinals and will face the Austin Spurs in the best-of-three Conference Finals.

An eight-year NBA veteran, Gomes was selected by the Boston Celtics in the second round (50th overall pick) of the 2005 NBA Draft. Gomes owns NBA career averages of 10.1 points, 4.6 rebounds and 27.6 minutes in 487 games with the Celtics, Minnesota Timberwolves, Los Angeles Clippers and Oklahoma City Thunder.

D`Angelo Russell putting up big stats lately

D`Angelo Russell putting up big stats lately

Lakers guard D’Angelo Russell has marked his return to the starting lineup with some of the best performances of his rookie season. The No. 2 pick of NBA Draft 2015 is averaging 19.9 points and 5.0 assists while shooting 49.0 percent from three-point range in his last eight games. That stretch includes five 20-point efforts and the first 39-point outing by a Lakers rookie since Elgin Baylor in 1959. Russell leads all rookies with 106 three-pointers and ranks fourth among first-year players in scoring at 13.1 points per game.

— Via NBA News

Vander Blue named D-League Performer of Week

Vander Blue named D-League Performer of Week

Vander Blue of the Los Angeles D-Fenders was today named NBA Development League Performer of the Week for games played Monday, Feb. 15 through Sunday, Feb. 21. The honor is the first of Blue’s career.

Blue (6-4, 200, Marquette) helped Los Angeles to a 3-0 week, averaging 29.7 points (second in the league) on 46.7 percent shooting (28-for-60) to go with 7.0 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.0 steals. He connected on 28-of-31free throw attempts, good for 90.3 percent.

Other top performers considered include Austin’s Keifer Sykes, Erie’s Tyler Harvey, Idaho’s J.J. O’Brien, Iowa’s Andrew Harrison, Maine’s Coty Clarke and Malcolm Miller, Reno’s Ricky Ledo, Rio Grande Valley’s Will Cummings, Texas’ Brandon Ashley and Westchester’s Gani Lawal.

Byron Scott impressed by Julius Randle lately

The Lakers (11-44) are getting 11.1 points and a very impressive 10.0 rebounds in 27.3 minutes per game from forward Julius Randle this season. Here’s the Los Angeles Daily News with good news from the head coach’s perspective:

Byron Scott impressed by Julius Randle lately

The pouting Julius Randle showed as he went to bench left Lakers coach Byron Scott questioning the 21-year-old’s maturity.

Randle’s inconsistency with his jump shot prompted Scott to express skepticism whether he could fix it before this summer. An injury to Larry Nance Jr. still left Scott in doubt as to whether Randle could reclaim his starting spot.

But lately, Randle has given Scott a different impression.

“He’s been fantastic,” Scott said of Randle. “He’s not going overboard as far as trying to go too fast. He’s picking his moments and he’s rebounded the hell out of the ball.”

Tyronn Lue recalls how Kobe Bryant wanted to fight him

Here’s the Los Angeles Daily News sharing a great flashback to the past:

Tyronn Lue recalls how Kobe Bryant wanted to fight him

In his second NBA season with the Lakers (1999-2000), Lue played in a five-on-five scrimmage that in most circumstances would have suggested Bryant would pull off an endless highlight reel. Lue played on the reserve unit with Devean George, Brian Shaw, Mark Madsen and Slava Medvedenko. Bryant represented the starters that also included Shaquille O’Neal and Derek Fisher.

But as Bryant drove baseline for a layup, Lue recalled cutting from the elbow down toward the paint to block his dunk attempt against the glass. George then made a layup to seal the win. Shaw then teased Bryant for Lue’s scrimmage-defining block.

“He went crazy. Kobe wanted to fight me at first,” said Lue, who is now the Cleveland Cavaliers coach. “He wanted to play one-on-one after practice. He said, ‘We’re going to play one-on-one, me and you.’ I said, ‘No, I’m not playing you one-on-one.’ He was so mad. Then after that, every day we stepped onto the court and he just went after me every single day. It was crazy.”