Reported more than a month ago the Lakers made official the new additions to Mike Brown’s staff. Eddie Jordan, Bernie Bickerstaff and Steve Clifford all come aboard for the Lakers 2012-13 title push. The three new hires fill the void left by the departures of Ettore Messina, John Kuester and Quin Snyder. Both Messina and Snyder have gone overseas whereas Kuester has been reassigned within the organization.
Of the new coaches Jordan is the one that has garnered the most discussion during the offseason. A former head coach in the NBA, Jordan has been hired as the default offensive coordinator of the Lakers. This coming season the Lake Show will shift to the Princeton Offense, a scheme Jordan is very well versed in as a coach. During his time with Jason Kidd in New Jersey, Jordan helped guide the Nets to the NBA Finals. His offense also got the most out of Kidd who enjoyed some of the best years of his career in Jordan’s legendary system. That’s great news considering Jordan will be putting his offense in the very capable hands of Steve Nash.
Bickerstaff’s hire comes with a bit of irony. You see, once upon a time Bickerstaff was the president and general manager of the Denver Nuggets where he gave a young man his first break in the NBA. That man is none other than his new boss – Mike Brown. Bickerstaff brings a wealth of hoops experience having coached and worked in the front offices of various franchises during the course of a near four decades in pro ball.
Clifford will bring a sense of continuity to Dwight Howard’s transition from Orlando to Los Angeles. For the last five seasons Clifford worked as an assistant for Magic. He’s also done time on the staffs of Houston and New York.