The NBA’s Executive of the Year award has often garnered criticism for its randomness. For example, this year, David Griffin, who brought in LeBron James and Kevin Love did not win. Instead, Bob Myers of the Golden State Warriors won because… I have no idea.
-== 3 Step Plan To Fix The Lakers ==-
If that isn’t enough, Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times reported Friday that Mitch Kupchak earned votes as well.
Golden State's Bob Myers won NBA exec of the year. Curiously, Kupchak tied for 10th, picking up a 2nd-places vote among 30 voting NBA execs.
— Mike Bresnahan (@Mike_Bresnahan) May 1, 2015
Kupchak’s Los Angeles Lakers finished with the worst record in the history of its franchise and his biggest move (drafting Julius Randle) ended in a broken leg and lost season, essentially. Granted, the injury was of the freak variety and was not something Kupchak could have possibly seen coming, but recognizing him this year doesn’t seem ideal.
With Kupchak at the helm, the Lakers did find exciting rookie Jordan Clarkson and acquired solid role players like Ed Davis and Wayne Ellington. He deserves credit for that, and to sticking to the strategy of building for the future.
Votes are not made public, as they come from other general managers, but I hope desperately that one of those votes came from Philadelphia 76ers GM Sam Hinkie. Tank respects tank, after all.