Los Angeles Lakers brain trust working together to build team
The Los Angeles Lakers brain trust are all on the same page when it comes to how to build the team’s roster.
The Los Angeles Lakers are on the up and up as they look to end their rebuild and become contenders again.
Championship teams are made up of a combination of skilled and cohesive players, but it’s up to the front office to build a high caliber roster.
With the NBA Draft next week and free agency looming in the future, Lakers’ fans can find comfort in a unified front office.
They decided early on that Luke Walton is the nucleus as the head coach. Per an interview with Howard Beck on “The Full 48″, owner, Jeanie Buss recalls sitting down with Magic Johnson, fresh in his role as President of Basketball Operations:
"“I said, ‘Do we have anybody on the team now that you could build the team around?’ And he said, ‘Well, I don’t think any of them are ready. You might, but that’s not clear yet.’ He said, ‘I would build a team for Luke Walton, the way he coaches. That’s what I would do.’ So when he said that, then I knew he and I were on the same page.”"
The current roster is notorious for its list of young players. Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, Josh Hart, Kyle Kuzma and possibly Julius Randle, if he is re-signed, are quite a nucleus.
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To Jeanie Buss, that’s not a bad thing, “Yes, there is the history and there is the legacy that [the young players are] joining, but this is chapter of the Lakers’ history that they get to write…This is all about the youth and developing players for our future,” says Buss.
So does this mean LeBron James is too old to join the fledgling squad? Nope! Buss says, “Magic and Rob Pelinka are completely empowered to do what they think is best in delivering that product…a roster that will play the style of basketball that Luke brings to us.”
While the duo of Johnson and Pelinka have free-range, Buss shares that, “they make sure they talk to the coach and the scouting department, they talk to the G-League…and that’s the kind of organization that I’m comfortable with.” She adds that they are complete and thorough.
Next: Los Angeles Lakers Ultimate Guide to 2018 Offseason
A Lakers championship team may not exist immediately, but fans can trust the duo of Johnson and Pelinka to work hand in hand with Walton to get there as soon as possible.