The Los Angeles Lakers are looking to turn the page from the Luke Walton era.
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After "parting ways" with Walton last week, the Lakers have their eye on a potential new head coaching hire in former Cleveland Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue. According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, general manager Rob Pelinka is meeting with Lue on Friday to discuss the Lakers' head coaching vacancy.
The Lakers have certainly had their fair share of drama in terms of personnel over the last two weeks.
Prior to the Lakers' regular-season finale against the Portland Trail Blazers, Magic Johnson sent shockwaves through the NBA when he announced that he was stepping down from being the team's president of basketball operations. Later in the week, the team mutually agreed to go their separate ways with Walton, who was hired as the Sacramento Kings' head coach a short time later.
It's certainly not surprising to see Lue emerge as one of the first candidates interviewed by the Lakers considering his history with LeBron James. After all, James and Lue won a championship together with the Cavaliers in 2016, so the familiarity between the two sides is certainly there.
The Lakers have also reportedly been interested in Philadelphia 76ers assistant coach Monty Williams and planned to meet with Williams prior to Game 3 of Philadelphia's opening round series against the Brooklyn Nets. In addition, ESPN's Ramona Shelburne reported that the Lakers were also planning to meet with Miami Heat assistant coach Juwan Howard for the head coaching vacancy with Miami's season coming to a close.
Lue had accumulated a 128-83 record with the Cavaliers after he took over during the 2015-16 season. The Cavaliers fired David Blatt midway through that campaign and Lue served as his replacement before ultimately becoming the team's full-time head coach.
Prior to being promoted, Lue became the NBA's highest-paid assistant coach when he landed with Cleveland in 2014. He had also spent time with the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Clippers as an assistant coach. Upon taking over in Cleveland, Lue did lead the Cavaliers to the first NBA title in franchise history in 2016 as Cleveland defeated the Golden State Warriors in seven games.
The Cavaliers had an 0-6 record prior to Lue being relieved of his duties. He was coming off a season in which he helped lead the Cavaliers to their fourth consecutive trip to the NBA Finals. However, for the third time in four years, the Warriors came away with the NBA title and were able to sweep Lue and the Cavaliers in convincing fashion.
Lue certainly makes a ton of sense for the Cavaliers with James being a big fan of Lue throughout their time together. With a big offseason looming for Los Angeles, hiring a head coach is definitely the first step for a franchise that is looking to return to prominence.
