The Lakers Are Creating A Strong Melt Down With Fans
The Lakers are creating mixed feelings with their fans. Before I get started with my rant, I have to make it perfectly clear that I am a die-hard Los Angeles Laker fan and have been since the early ’80s. Showtime! with Ervin “Magic” Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Cooper, Jamal “Silk” Wilkes, Big Game James Worthy, Kurt Rambis, Byron Scott…well, you get the picture. This team has had its share of ups and downs, and I rode through them all.
The Lakers Soap Opera
The LA Lakers recently fired Coach Darvin Ham, according to the Lakers Daily. Then the organization interviewed and offered arguably the top college coach in the nation Dan Hurley to be their new head coach. He turned down a six-year $70 million deal to remain at the University of Connecticut, the Associated Press reported. He has won back-to-back national championships there and any team would be lucky to be under his leadership. So, what would make someone who coaches in college turn down the best job in the NBA for double the pay? I feel that it’s the LeBron James factor.
LeBron, after all of his accomplishments, has been labeled a coach killer. According to sports publication Fadeaway World, “The Los Angeles Lakers have fired Darvin Ham, making him the seventh head coach to be fired out of the nine coaches that LeBron James has had in his 21-year NBA career.”
Great coaches like Mike Brown, who was named coach of the year, was fired by LeBron aka “LeGM.” He clearly runs the show and does not respect coaches once things are not going his way. There has been numerous occasions where you see him not paying attention in huddles, leaving the court early, or shouting at the coach. Dan Hurley said he just didn’t want to be a part of that drama, a Los Angeles Time article discussed.
JJ Reddick is a LeBron advocate, friend, and partner on their podcast. He probably has talked about LeBron being the best ever for years and will stand up for him through everything. All of a sudden, without any coaching experience, Reddick is the new captain of the LeBron Lakers, ESPN reported! We can only speculate now if this was a good move or not. Many Laker fans are going crazy saying this is a terrible hire.
It only does the obvious: open the door so LeBron can call the shots. LeBron can overpower JJ and do his own thing. Yes, Reddick can say he wants to minimize Lebron’s ball-handling duties and focus on going through Anthony Davis. But, we all know that’s a bunch of junk. Also, people have been eyeing that this could potentially allow the team to draft Bronny James — who many say doesn’t deserve to be there and is not ready. But once again, LeBron is calling the shots. Anthony Davis is in a tough situation because he will probably be the fall guy if things get bad, or they may just trade.
Related Story: The Truth About Bronny James Coming To The NBA
The Lakers Might As Well Start A Reality Show
The recent moves are horrible for the Lakers. But, it does show that the Lakers are made for a TV reality show! Who knows, maybe JJ can win and prove that you do not need experience to coach in the NBA. But clearly, this was a buddy move for LeBron to be happy, get his son on the team, and do what he wants to do. Winning might not be a priority for him. If you haven’t noticed, Magic Johnson has been quiet on the situation. All I can say is with Boston winning championship number 18 by passing the Lakers, I know Laker Nation is in a frenzy over the JJ Reddick hiring and may quickly turn on him and LeBron real soon — if they don’t win this season.