After a forgettable 2023-24 NBA season, the Los Angeles Lakers brass decided to shake things up by parting ways with head coach Darvin Ham after two years with the storied franchise. Along with Ham being fired by the team following a first-round flameout against the Denver Nuggets in five games, the Lakers front office also overhauled the coaching staff to start fresh.
Although longtime assistant coach Phil Handy was able to stay on the staff after the team parted ways with Frank Vogel in 2022, the 53-year-old was unable to do the same this time around, with JJ Redick becoming Ham’s successor in Los Angeles.
Despite being very popular with Lakers players and fans of the 17-time NBA champions, Handy wasn’t asked to return this year. Redick and the Lakers front office chose to bring in all new faces, with veterans Nate McMillan and Scott Brooks being the most notable names added to the coaching staff.
Even though Handy’s firing was announced a couple of months ago, the three-time NBA champion, who won titles as an assistant with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Toronto Raptors and Lakers, has been quiet about his situation until now.
On Wednesday, Handy took to his Instagram account to bid farewell to Lakers fans, who have shown nothing but love for the longtime assistant coach:
With Handy being a free agent, it’ll be interesting to see where his journey takes him next in the NBA. It doesn’t appear that he has any immediate plans to take another coaching job in the league, but that could quickly change if he gets a call from a team with a vacancy in the coming weeks.
In 2011, Handy began his stint in the league with the Lakers as a development coach, working with and creating a lasting relationship with the late great Kobe Bryant.
If he doesn’t take another job, it will be the first time since his first stint with the Lakers, but he has kept busy as a player development trainer and could focus on that for the time being.
Phil Handy Agrees with Dwight Howard About Rob Pelinka Breaking Up 2020 Lakers
Former Lakers center Dwight Howard recently dropped a bombshell by claiming that general manager Rob Pelinka should be blamed for breaking up the 2020 championship team in Los Angeles. Howard believes the squad could have won back-to-back titles and might have begun another dynasty for the Purple and Gold.
Former Lakers assistant coach Phil Handy agreed with Howard’s opinion about the team getting broken up by responding to a video of the three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year making that statement.
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