The Los Angeles Lakers have a lot to sort out this summer if they want to get back into championship contention, but perhaps the first order of business is to find a new head coach.
The Lakers decided to part ways with Frank Vogel after a disappointing 2021-22 season despite him winning a championship in 2020, meaning they are now looking for their seventh coach since Phil Jackson retired just over a decade ago.
Some candidates have already begun to emerge as the Lakers have expressed interest in Quin Snyder of the Utah Jazz while also requesting to interview Milwaukee Bucks assistant Darvin Ham.
Perhaps atop the Lakers’ wishlist though is Toronto Raptors head coach Nick Nurse, who already has a championship to his name and is represented by Klutch Sports. Whether or not the Lakers could get Nurse though has already been in question considering he is still under contract with the Raptors.
It appears that is not likely to happen as he shot down rumors of going to the Lakers in his exit interview in Toronto, via Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports:
Nick Nurse on reports of the Lakers' interest in him: "I don't know where that stuff comes from and I'm focused on coaching this team."
— Josh Lewenberg (@JLew1050) May 2, 2022
Considering Nurse is still under contract with the Raptors, him shutting down Lakers rumors does not come as much of a surprise, even if he is interested in the L.A. job.
If Nurse were serious about joining the Lakers, it would likely have to happen via trade with L.A. sending draft assets back to Toronto. The Lakers do not have many draft picks at their disposal right now, so the odds of them landing Nurse seem to be very low.
With that being said, the Lakers will likely shift their coaching search elsewhere, with Snyder and Ham being viewed as the favorites by many.
Lakers taking different approach to coaching search
Typically when NBA teams are looking for new coaches, they bring in as many candidates as possible for interviews before landing on a few finalists to bring in for second interviews.
According to a recent report though, the Lakers are taking a different approach by only interviewing a few candidates at first, so it will be interesting to see how that unique strategy works out for L.A.
Have you subscribed to our YouTube channel? It’s the best way to watch player interviews, exclusive coverage from events, participate in live shows, and more!
