Ex-Coach Luke Walton Discussion

I agree with this point of view but I think Magic is actually being serious

 

that's the difference between when Mike Brown was fired early in the season. We were losing against inferior teams whereas we've played a really tough schedule against playoff teams and have been 1-2 possessions or made free throws away from winning these games

You always want to win those, no doubt. But is the cost of kicking the entire culture to the curb, having to restart everything from scratch this soon into the season worth a little discomfort in the first 7-8 games of the season.... COME ON Magic...

 

Again: I urge everyone to read the article and not just the headline.

MOST of what Woj says is pure conjecture based on sources I don't think he actually has in the organization. What seems clear is that Magic called a meeting after the 0-2 trip and stressed urgency to win games even while we're still learning. After that, his purported pressure on the coaching staff is backed up nothing which Woj admits IN the article. He says that LeBron AND Jeanie have privately and publicly supported Luke. He says that Magic has publicly supported Luke and there is no point in the meeting the Lakers had that said anyone was calling for Luke's head or that voices were raised or that it was contentious in the slightest.

It's obvious that Woj is not happy that he doesn't have inside access to the Lakers, he's been that way since Mitch was in charge. This article is about 95% conjecture feeding off the frustration of the fans. It's nonsense.

He also attacks Magic by claiming Magic isn't around much or isn't dedicated to this job which I find stupid as well. Magic has done a tremendous amount of personal scouting, meeting with players, makes the rounds as the face of the franchise, he connects with agents and other notable figures, he's been to CBA classes in NY. I mean the guy is as dedicated as he needs to be and he JUST convinced LeBron James to join the team. What the **** is Woj actually saying here? It's more or less a hit piece on the Lakers which is something Woj has enjoyed doing in the past.

 

Woj is great at breaking news, probably the best.

He gains connections by writing nice pieces about everybody for positive media spin. Over the years he's accumulated a lot of sources and contacts that way.

He never has been able to get into the Lakers to do it though (Ding did) and I think he's always harbored resentment for that. That's why almost everything he writes on the Lakers is tinted negatively. In this piece he stretches a meeting where Magic calls for urgency into "Luke is on the hot seat, Magic is irresponsible in his position" which implies we're a mess. He calls Magic "volatile" based on nothing sourced. He just says that Magic "earned that reputation" but doesn't explain how or why or what that even means.

 

Woj = Spurs shill =

 

Oh believe me, I read the Woj article, hence where I got the quotes from my initial post above and why I followed that up with if anything this may just be Magic lighting a fire under Luke little.

 

Sorry BT, I didn't mean to imply that you didn't.

I responded to you because you wrote "COME ON Magic" and I think that's a little unfair.

From what I can gather in terms of what actually happened and what isn't just conjecture from Woj: there was a meeting where Magic called for more urgency from the staff and the players.

What part of that is bad? I'd expect Magic to feel that way.

Everything else: Luke being on the hot seat, Magic being "volatile", the coaching staff being nervous after every win and loss now was all conjecture that Woj didn't source at all.

 

On the brighter side. Did anyone catch the ESPN radio interview here in LA last night with Stan Van Gundy? They talked Lakers for a while. Brief summary: He thinks the team is overall playing well for bringing a new team together early in the season. He likes what he sees offensively. He emphasized that the biggest issue is the defense. He described a few plays at the end of the Mavs game where the Lakers did not make the Mavs use any clock to score and gave them several uncontested shots.

Now I know SVG is not the coaching genius that some here are, but it seemed to be a solid analysis. I wouldn't mind hiring him to coach the D.

 

Everything you said may be true and general common sense would hope that is how Magic approached it instead of how woj portrayed the meeting. I may have fell for Woj and his sources too much despite also knowing he's not been a huge fan of the Lakers over the years.

I also know there is more dialogue that goes on behind the scenes than we or even Woj knows. Magic and Rob I'm sure are at most practices, they see how the coaches are doing, how well the players are or aren't executing what the coaches are preaching over and over again. I trust that process, which is why I got a little defensive about how Magic could all of a sudden be warning Luke his job is on the line.

 

That's funny. I don't get the Luke hate here.

 

He claims sources have said that he has an internally volatile style of management. What sources does he have in the organization? I would agree with you that some agent is speaking up here, Beasley's would make sense.

This quote would support you:

What veterans could he be referring to? Klutch isn't rocking the boat this early.

However, this isn't sourced:

This also isn't sourced and is pure conjecture:

He also goes on to admit that LeBron, Rob, Magic, and Jeanie have all been public supporters of Luke. So what the hell is he actually talking about? One veteran complaining about the rotations? He spun that into a "Luke is on the hotseat" article.