Los Angeles Lakers: 3 Priorities in offseason post-Magic Johnson’s exit

Go big game head hunting for a new president of basketball operations

The national media can slate the Lakers for a bad season, they can laugh about LeBron & Co. not making the playoffs, but one thing is for certain, the Lakers’ president of basketball operations is not only the most coveted position in the NBA but potentially the most sought after position in professional sports.

You’re talking about running a storied franchise known globally that is in one of the biggest markets in the United States, with an owner willing to spend whatever is necessary to win and a fan base that even during the recent dark years have never wavered in their support. Not to mention the roster.

The Lakers having a glut of young prospects on their rookie deals, a superstar in LeBron James and cap space to sign a max free agent this summer. You can bet that Jeanie Buss will be fielding a lot of calls over the next few days with people trying to throw their hat in the ring for the president of basketball operations job.

The Lakers first calls should be to Bob Myers in Golden State, R.C Buford in San Antonio, Pat Riley in Miami, Tim Connelly in Denver and Masai Ujiri in Toronto. The Lakers should aim high.

If they can land a premier executive who has years of experience, who has built a contender from the ground up, has dealt with superstars and handled big personalities and who isn’t afraid to shy from the expectation or the pressure, they’d have hit a home run.

If I was choosing, I would choose between Bob Myers, R.C Buford and Masai Ujiri. Each has vast experience and would be a great fit for the Lakers, but for me, Bob Myers is the ideal fit.

Myers is everything we wanted Rob Pelinka to be. He was the blueprint in which the Lakers tried to follow, hiring a renowned sports agent who would have experience dealing with front offices as well as agents and players. Myers has done this masterfully while also constructing one of the greatest squads in NBA history.

It would be very easy to understand if the Warriors were not willing to let Myers go, but one very important thing needs to be taken into account.

The current assistant general manager of the Golden State Warriors is Kirk Lacob, otherwise known as the son of the Golden State Warriors owner Joe Lacob. With his son working closely under Myers, it wouldn’t be too farfetched to believe that both Joe and Kirk Lacob had imagined this happening down the road.

With Myers potentially a target for the Lakers, why not allow it to happen now?