1. The replacement options are less than ideal
The Lakers can say that they are going to undergo a “methodical” process to hire a new head coach all they want. We all know what is really going to happen. Los Angeles is going to hire the coach that LeBron James backs the most (more on that later) as well as someone who the front office can get along with.
The early reported targets for the Lakers are less than ideal. The first two names that have been tied to the Lakers are Doc Rivers and Quin Snyder, two coaches who are currently employed by their respective teams.
LA does not have any assets to trade for either of these head coaches, so if either ends up on the Lakers next season then that means they were fired. Both guys could very well be fired as well if the Philadelphia 76ers fall short after the James Harden trade or if the Utah Jazz fail to have a deep playoff run.
So, the two options for the Lakers are two coaches who coach talented teams but cannot get over the hump? Got it. Rivers’ track record in the postseason has been awful outside of the 2008-2010 Boston Celtics and Quin Snyder has a 19-26 playoff record and has never made it past the second round.
Nick Nurse is a new name who has entered the rumor mill but that is as far-fetched as the Lakers winning the title this season. The Raptors are not going to fire Nurse or trade him to LA. C’mon now.
So we have two guys who could be fired and whatever other head coaches are on the market unless the Lakers just want to tap in Kurt Rambis as the head coach. Based on how the team hired head coaches before Vogel, I don’t trust them to find the diamond in the rough.