The Los Angeles Lakers have apparently moved on from Tyronn Lue and shifted the focus of their head coaching search towards Frank Vogel, as the two sides met on Thursday.
According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski and Ohm Youngmisuk, Vogel made a "strong impression" during his interview with the Lakers and the two sides are expected to meet again regarding the team's heading coaching job.
ESPN reporting with @NotoriousOHM: Former Orlando and Indiana coach Frank Vogel made a strong impression on Lakers in his interview and sides are expected to talk again on head coaching job. Story soon.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) May 11, 2019
In addition, Wojnarowski is also reporting that Jason Kidd remains a "strong candidate" to be an assistant coach for the Lakers.
Vogel most recently coached the Magic from 2016-18 after the Pacers did not renew his contract at the conclusion of the 2015-16 season. During his two seasons in Orlando, Vogel led the team to last-place finishes in the Southeast Division, compiling a cumulative record of 54-110.
While his Magic stint was nothing to write home about, Vogel had an extremely successful tenure as the Pacers' head coach from 2010-11 until his departure in 2016. He led the Pacers to playoff appearances in five of his six seasons there and led them to two consecutive conference final berths, coming up one win short of an NBA Finals appearance in 2013.
Vogel previously worked for the Lakers as an advance scout in 2005-06.
The Lakers are currently seeking to hire their fifth head coach in the past eight seasons. The franchise hasn't made the playoffs in six consecutive seasons -- the longest steak in franchise history.
Prior to recent reports, it had seemed that the Lakers and Lue were a natural fit. Lue had coached LeBron James with the Cleveland Cavaliers and led LeBron and the Cavs to their lone title in franchise history when they won the 2016 Finals. Furthermore, Lue has a history with the Lakers, having played for them during the early 2000s when they won the 2001 Finals.
However, contract talks reached an impasse as Lue wanted to hire his own coaching staff -- while the Lakers wanted to pick his coaching staff for him.
In addition, the Lakers were expected to interview former Memphis Grizzlies head coach J.B. Bickerstaff for the team's heading coaching job on Friday.
