Since the 2018-19 NBA regular season ended over a week ago, the Los Angeles Lakers find themselves without a president of basketball operations and head coach.
As Magic Johnson suddenly resigned, Luke Walton was fired three days later before quickly becoming the new Sacramento Kings head coach.
With general manager Rob Pelinka conducting the team’s coaching search, there have been questions about if the Lakers will look for Johnson’s replacement.
Amid conflicting reports, owner Jeanie Buss reportedly has no plans to hire a new president of basketball operations, according to Tania Ganguli and Brad Turner of Los Angeles Times:
Buss has no plans to hire someone to replace Johnson, who is still expected to be part of the Lakers’ free-agent recruiting this summer in some capacity.
Because the Lakers have stayed quiet since Johnson’s resignation, there has been speculation regarding Pelinka’s role with the team moving forward. While there have also been conflicting reports about his reputation around the league, it appears Buss is empowering Pelinka instead.
With Buss reportedly having no plans to find Johnson’s replacement, she will be meeting with former Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue and Philadelphia 76ers assistant coach Monty Williams in what will be their second interviews with the Lakers.
Considering what is at stake for the Lakers heading into Year 2 with LeBron James, only time will tell if Buss made the right decision.
