After much deliberation the Lakers have hired Mike Brown as their next head coach. Brown is best known as the former coach of LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers where he led the Cavaliers to the NBA Finals in 2007 and to the best record in the regular season in back to back seasons in 2008-09 and 2009-10.
Before coaching in Cleveland Brown was an assistant with the Indiana Pacers where he coached current Laker, Ron Artest. During his time in Cleveland he also coached Shannon Brown and Trey Johnson, who are also on the Los Angeles roster.
The deal is for three years with a fourth year option, and is worth a reported $18.25 million. After having the highest paid coach in the NBA the past two seasons in Phil Jackson the Lakers stated that saving money was something they were looking to do with their next coach. Regardless, the decision to hire Brown came as a surprise for many close to the situation. After rumors that the team was interested in a variety of other coaches, Brown managed to rise above the rest after the interview process concluded.
Brown became the frontrunner for the coaching job after the team’s executive vice president, Jim Buss, was impressed with his defensive mindset. The Lakers made the offer late Tuesday night but had to wait until Wednesday morning to hear whether or not Brown had accepted.
After accepting the offer Brown became the 18th coach in Los Angeles Lakers’ history, and the 23rd coach in total Lakers’ history (including the Minneapolis days).
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