Among many potential Los Angeles Lakers head coaching candidates, one name who has been mentioned regularly is Doc Rivers. Much like other potential candidates Quin Snyder and Nick Nurse, Rivers remains under contract with his current team, the Philadelphia 76ers.
Rivers has long been one of the most successful coaches in the NBA, though coincidentally his greatest success has come with rivals of the Lakers. Of course, he won a championship with the Boston Celtics in 2008 and also led the Los Angeles Clippers during their most successful era in franchise history.
Rivers is now being mentioned as the possible replacement for Frank Vogel, who the Lakers parted ways with after their season ended. And while Rivers is reportedly intrigued with the idea, he and the 76ers are reportedly on the same page about their future together, according to Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer:
But despite widespread rumblings of Rivers’ intrigue in the Lakers’ opening, and incessant talk of Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey perhaps desiring a different play-caller, the 76ers have maintained that Rivers and team leadership remain aligned about their future together. Rivers’ contract runs through 2024-25 at $8 million per season, which is a hefty price for ownership to swallow.
That contract alone is enough of a reason for the 76ers to be hesitant about parting ways with Rivers as that would be a big price to pay. Not to mention Philadelphia is still in the midst of a playoff run with a chance to make it to its first Eastern Conference Finals since 2001.
With Rivers seemingly locked in to Philadelphia, and Snyder apparently not viewing the Lakers job as an attractive one, the Lakers will have to look beyond their initial top candidates to find their next head coach. To that point, the team has already requested permission to interview Milwaukee Bucks assistant Darvin Ham.
The Lakers plan to take their time in their head coaching search to ensure that the right person is selected to help turn this franchise around. With many potential targets already looking unlikely, expect to see many more names pop up as the days go on.
Snyder doesn’t view Lakers as attractive landing spot
Another prime candidate for the Lakers head coaching position was Utah Jazz head coach Quin Snyder. The head coach is a former Lakers assistant and his future in Utah is unclear leading to the speculation, but apparently the interest is not mutual.
Snyder reportedly doesn’t view the Lakers’ job as an attractive one. Why this is reportedly the case for Snyder is unknown, but he also didn’t care for the way the Lakers handled the Vogel firing which likely didn’t help the situation either.
Regardless, much like Rivers, it is seeming increasingly less likely that Snyder will be the Lakers’ next head coach.
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