[negguaryParticipant]

lakers fire Mitch, promote magic!! Thoughts good or bad for lakers?? 

[BleedGreen808Participant]

The trade dealine is 2 days from now so the timing seems off.  If the Lakers were going to do this why not make the move sooner to give Magic time to get acclimated.  I won’t predict him being bad but he will be learning on the job.  

[ChoppyParticipant]

 So what will Magic be like? Has he had any experience in running a basketball team? I can’t remember him doing anything like that. He was pushing for a larger role with the Lakers – He’s now got that opportunity and the time to prove himself in that role. 

[Magic JordanParticipant]

 To answer Neggs question…

BAD

 

[SlickBouncePassParticipant]

you went from a guy that had 0 basketball knowledge to a guy who knows basketball.  Jim Buss purposely left Magic outside the franchise, why? Doesn’t seem like a smart thing to do being Magic Johnson is one of the smartest basketball players ever.

If you listen to Magic he is a basketball nut, still watches whatever basketball is on tv at all times, was offered positions with other franchises but wanted to work for the Lakers.

He’s no Jerry West until proven, but the guy knew enough about the personnel on the team not matching with Byron Scott and Mike D’Antoni, and how they were horrible hires.

He will get them to start winning, and hopefully more winning than Philly and Orlando before the season ends, which for TANKERS (like us in Philly), is a good thing, but LA is not accustomed to tanking.  

LA is used to having stars fall in their lap, Pau Gasol for Javaris Crittendon etc etc, so its great to be in LA, all you need to do is create some systemic winning then go get a Paul George etc.  Its natural nobody wants to fill Kobe’s shoes right away, but eventually someone will once they start winning again.  Without winning and under Jim Buss, they are a joke franchise.

Leave the Tanking to Philly and give us that pick.

Your boy Magic is smart enough to get rid of the Nick Young types and allow your youngs like D’Lo Russell to be able to close out games in the 4th quarter with experience like he should.  

Deng, Mosgov, like seriously, y’all are not happy with this move?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

[MopgrassParticipant]

I’m afraid he’s too much like Byron Scott. He’s an old school guy. A lot of what he says sounds like they used to play right and today basketball is played incorrectly. He tried to be a coach too. 28-38 record. It’s not enough of a record to go by… when you never got to improve. Still, it doesn’t show him to be some genius. I’m hoping that he plays the face of the franchise he’s an amazing guy, basketball player, and presence. But I hope he leaves player decisions to a great GM and Luke Walton.

I hoped they included Luke Walton in the GM talk. It’s supposed o be Rob Pelinka, the agent. Luke Walton know what’s up.

[JordoParticipant]

 I 100% agree it’s strange to fire your GM right before the trade deadline but i dont think you want somebody making more future decisions if you don’t see them with a future in your franchise anymore. I like the move. Clean house and jumpstart this rebuild. 

[BothTeamsPlayedHardParticipant]

Jim Buss was the problem, and depending on how much power still might be. Kupchak had a long and successful run as GM. How much of his problems at the end were because he was kneecapped by ownership is not clear. Jim’s title has been taken away, which is a good thing, but the best thing for the Lakers would be if he is no longer in an actual position to meddle.

[MopgrassParticipant]

I fully agree. Kupcheck was collateral damage. If he was sunnier, I’d say he’d have a job somewhere immediately.

[RUDEBOY_Participant]

 just saw on kevin ding’s twitter feed that kobe’s agent rob pelinka is close to becoming lakers gm….ding has become a very reliable source for lakers inside info…

[MopgrassParticipant]

I was hoping for Ryan West. Jerry West reportedly said he might be interested in a position. He could be a consultant. Dude is a savant. He doesn’t’ want to be a GM, but his son is noteworthy. He has done a great job as the head scout. He could groom his son. This has been suggested before in the news, but now it can happen.

[OhCanada-Participant]

 Don’t get so caught up in this. In my mind Magic is just a well paid figure head. He steals headlines and uses his star power to catch the fans attention while their team rebuilds. The Lakers are likely committed to a rebuild and need something to keep revenue high.

Or they really handed the team over to Magic. Come on…

 

 

[publius2481Participant]

 From what I have seen, Buss is also no longer going to be in charge of basketball operations. It looks like Magic will fill Buss’s role and they will bring in a new GM to fill Mitch’s role. Personally, this makes the move better IMHO. I don’t see Magic being a full-time GM, but if they get a good person to fill the GM role, I think Magic can help with recruiting free agents and scouting players (he has has a great BBall IQ, so he could really help with player evaluation). The timing seems weird, but if you know you are going to make the change, why delay it. I think the bigger question is why they did not do it sooner.

[Dazzling Dunks and Basketball BloopersParticipant]

 The fact that this was reportedly done because the Lakers didn’t pull the trigger on a cousins trade that would have forced them to give up Ingram and probably at least one other of their young players scares me somewhat. As if the Lakers would have made that deal if magic were in charge (which is absolutely the wrong approach to building the team imo).

As for magic, my concerns remain the same. I just question if he will ultimately have the patience to see a rebuild through. He is not someone who is used to losing. He couldn’t handle it as a coach and didn’t last long as a result. I just don’t want to see us chasing superstars or looking for a quick fix that will hurt the team in the long run.

For this to work, Lakers will need to hire a GM who is well-versed in the salary cap and CBA, 2 things magic admittedly knows very little about. Someone with a measured approach who knows the current NBA landscape and most importantly, someone who’s opinion magic will respect. Maybe pelinka could be that guy but I just don’t know enough about him.

There are some really positive signs from this team even if it’s not reflected in their record. But make no mistake, I really don’t think there is a quick fix for the Lakers to get back to contention. What has worked in the past won’t necessarily work for them now. Whoever is in charge needs to understand that.

 

 

 

[PurpleMonkeyDishwasherParticipant]

 Magic is a huge risk for the Lakers.  Unless they only want him as a face of the franchise I am very skeptical that he has what it takes to run a team.  

[holefillers1Participant]

 I have yet to hear Magic say something bad about anyone.  Pretty sure his favorite player is MCW..so watch out for a Bulls trade.

[Robb_CParticipant]

 Magic is extremely savvy when it comes to business, Hes been extremely successful outside of basketball and is definitely capable of being the guy who puts the Lakers on the right path.. Hiring Pelinka would immediately give him access to the agents and being able to broker deals among FAs due to the previous relationships Pelinka already has.. The Lakers Franchise sells itself, the team just lacked the front office personnel for agents to take seriously.. 

[Ahkasi ClayParticipant]

 The losing mentality culture that has been brewing since Kobe refused to take a step back for players like Dwight,  has been around for Years.  Lakers had to do something.  It will be interesting if the stick with their questionable youth they have now,   or if theyou decide to blow it up and rebuild the Tank.  (The Idea of Hinkle in L.A. makes me smile.

[SmooveKRYPTParticipant]

They’re trying hard to pattern themselves after the Warriors blueprint. Walton coach, agent –> GM, NBA legend with a significant voice in personnel decisions. They’re even trying to build a similar roster, but that hasn’t gone so well…

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