Lakers Promote From Within, Reveal Analytics Personnel

The Los Angeles Lakers are famous for operating from behind closed doors and relying on their team’s success to speak for itself.

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The organization doesn’t feel compelled to lay their cards on the table for everyone to see. They have a different way of doing things, and the front office has earned its fair share of leeway.

That approach has worked in the past, but it’s not exactly transparent. It requires trust from a fan base that often times shows very little patience.

That said, Lakers fans have given a tremendous amount of support to General Manager Mitch Kupchak and the rest of the front office minus Jim Buss, the executive vice president of basketball operations.

Lakers fans typically back off as long as everything is going well, and there’s a clear plan in place. That hasn’t been the case of late. Instead, the franchise has only served as the butt of jokes especially when it comes to modern analytics.

Since Dwight Howard‘s departure two years ago, fans have had little to cheer for outside of Jordan Clarkson who was the lone bright spot last season. The Lakers are 48-116 over the last two seasons. Combine that with losing out on Carmelo Anthony and LaMarcus Aldridge in back-to-back off-seasons, and it was only a matter of time before frustration for a directionless franchise boiled over.

It’s not unusual for Lakers fans to treat Buss as a common punching bag after another dismal off-season. That said, Kupchak and team president Jeanie Buss were also called into question last summer.

Across all major American sports, the Lakers ranked in the bottom ten of “non-believers” in ESPN’s informed analytic study. The report highlighted the team’s unwillingness to spend money on equipment and resources needed to catch-up to the modern-day.

ESPN staff writer Baxter Holmes reported his findings with regards to the Lakers analytics, or lack there of, department three days after the team ranked second-to-last among NBA teams.

It’s become apparent to the rest of the league the Lakers have an analytics department, but they don’t know what to do with the data. One NBA analytics official went as far as to say the team is doing the exact opposite of conventional analytic thinking.

"There is no evidence that I’m aware of that suggests progressive thought, finding innovative ways to improve or progress the team — either in team construction/composition, or on-court play. If anything, their on-court play is actively counter to more widely accepted analytic insights: in the absence of specific personnel pointing you in another direction, increase pace, attack the paint in transition, shoot more 3s, protect the paint and deny the corners on defense."

This is not a surprise, because it seems as though the organization has been non-believers in the analytics department for quite some time. However, the front office has adamantly denied that is the case and trying to change that perception over the last few months.

The straw that broke the camel’s back occurred in July after the team was embarrassed following their first free-agent meeting with Aldridge. It was reported the highly coveted big man was not impressed with the Lakers presentation and its lack of analytics.

The Lakers tried to save face after securing a second meeting with Aldridge, but the damage to their reputation was complete despite a solid showing from their analytics department the second time around.

A couple months later, Kupchak made it clear in an interview with Sam Amick of USA Today revealing the team’s analytics department was a part of the greater process. He felt the fans desired transparency more than ever, and Kupchak was going to give it to them.

"We’re going to be judged on the product and whether we win or lose, but the last couple of years, we’re not winning. And our goal is going to remain to win games. But we do have to, I feel, we have to show our fans that we’re doing everything we can to get back to that spot. If that means sharing these inner workings of the organization more so than we ever did, then we have to do that."

True to his word, Director of Analytics Yuju Lee and Associate Director of Analytics Aaron Danielson were revealed. Kupchak also announced promotions for Ryan West Clay Moser and Jesse Buss.

Lee graduated from UCLA with a master’s in statistics and computer sciences. Originally hired as a consultant in 2012, Lee now leads the Lakers Analytics team.

Danielson holds a master’s in public policy from the University of Chicago as well as a master’s in economics from New York University. Danielson is in the process of earning his PhD in statistics at UCLA. He was hired as a consultant two seasons ago.

Buss was promoted to assistant general manager/director of scouting and Ryan West to director of player personnel. The Lakers also created an entirely new position for Moser who will now serve as the assistant coach/director of basketball strategy. The position is meant to be the bridge between the analytics department and the coaching staff.

Moser was originally hired to be the associate head coach for the team’s D-League affiliate, the D-Fenders, in 2011. He was promoted to advance scout in December 2011. Moser has over 25 years of coaching experience. He was an assistant coach at North Carolina State and helped lead the Wolfpack to two NCAA Tournament berths, including a Sweet 16 in 1989.

The Lakers analytics department includes former head coach Rudy Tomjonavich and his son, Trey Tomjonavich. Their roles are less defined but are far less complicated, according to Holmes.

"…worked in a ‘statistics-based analysis role’ for several years with the team, working with more conventional stats, such as information found in box scores, and also using NBA.com’s StatsCube, the league’s official advanced statistical analysis tool."

Although none of these personnel moves involve new hires, Kupchak made it clear that was because they are among the most qualified in their field.

"The five people that we talked about who are in charge of accumulating, acquiring and interpreting the data, I feel they measure up to anybody in the league. I would put them against anybody in the league … I would not hesitate to put our department in a debate with any other (analytics) department (of another team). I know that they would be great."

The significance of this announcement is not who the people are or the position that was developed. The real significance lies in the organization pulling back the curtains for the first time and giving Lakers fans something to hold onto, transparency.

The Lakers reveled in behind the scenes transactions that lead to success for years. The trade for Pau Gasol came out of left field. The nixed trade for Chris Paul was even more surprising.

That said, the Lakers needed to open up for their fan base with the lack of success on the court the last two seasons. The fans want to know hope is on its way, but it’s up to the organization to lay it out for them. Some of the stuff that goes on behind the scenes can at least placate the public while the team continues to rebuild. In today’s age of instant communication, keeping information secret is far more difficult than ever before.

Why bother expending the energy to keep it under wraps?

Fans may get impatient at times. At least knowing more details about the team can help keep their eyes focused on the prize down the road and that’s winning a championship. When a team closes the door to the public, it doesn’t just keep out prying eyes. It takes away any shred of hope their fans could have clung to.

Having a great analytic base is a good start to quiet rumors of the team’s resistance to modernization. Hopefully, Kupchak and the rest of the organization continue to open up and let fans see the hard work they’re putting in to get back to the mountaintop.

Next: Earvin Johnson: Twenty Years Without 'Magic'

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