If jeanie really believes Jim isn't the right fit, I blame her just as much for sitting on her hands. Either replace him with someone experienced or stop bad mouthing him and acting surprised in public when you don't know about a coach being fired. Poop or get off the pot so to speak.
Total hit piece. Old news, Jim and Jeanie, blah blah blah. Neither of whom really even know the basketball end. Jim's a martini lunch guy who lets Mitch make the calls while Jimmy plays with his little Jr. GM Stat Analysis Kit he bought at RiteAid. You can tell when he opens his mouth he's clueless. Jeanie 1000x more so. Why not spin it in the positive light that the situation deserves, like the fact that Mitch has steered us right during a disastrous time. The anti-Laker CBA of 2011. The CP3 deal. the Nash and Kobe injuries and Kobe's farewell 3-year contract. Being spurned on by all free agents due to the rebuild and hanging on to Kobe. Out of that period, now we are sitting with Russell, Randel, moved up to get JC who no one saw, took Nance where no one saw him going, now Ingram and who knows with Zubac. All that youth is at bargain rate too (with the exception of JC) On top of that we have more spendable capital than any other team in the NBA. We could have signed up some terrible contracts and stupidly threw money on non-deserving players to try and be a 34 win team. Instead we're young and unburdened by financial commitments. Even Nick and Lou's contracts look ok in this new market (especially Lou's) and are easily ditchable if needed (Lou by trade, Nick by trade or stretch). Luckily, I don't think FAs care about a Ding piece. Let's face it, the guy's with The Bleacher Report.
It's possible Phil was the source, but why does Ding want to help the Knicks? If this isn't about getting an advantage in FA then Phil is just vicious. Jeanie seems like the source but it was almost too obvious...something's not right. Regardless doesn't Ding have an ear to the Lakers FO? Wouldn't putting something like this out sabotage our image right before FA? Why would Ding willingly crucify the Lakers if he didn't know his access would remain safe? Well if your source is the team President and that was her plan you'd be fine.
I used to think Ding is credible. I have come to the conclusion that he pulls stuff out of his behind all the time. So somebody told him "Jim was confident he will re-sign Howard"...so what. I was confident too lol. Also if Jim is confident he will sign players, thats nothing to report about. I'm sure most teams are confident, otherwise they wouldn't try. To create a drama like Jim is an idiot and he and Jeanie can't see eye to eye.
Not overly concerned with how this article affects us in free agency. The Buss kids have been at odds for years now so that's nothing new. Even the greatest of franchises go through lulls. However, I do fault Jim for just some God awful coaching hires (Mr. Potatohead, Pringles, and BOron). Win, and every hot free agent will want to be back in LA. We're trending in the right direction.
I'm wondering now if he is a mouthpiece or a jerk. He said he's had this story for months (10 months maybe) and just released it now. So that means while Jeanie is most definitely the main source on this piece, she gave him this stuff months ago and he just released it now. Why? Was it on command from Jeanie to do it that way or is this just a straight up hit piece? Honestly this was a big mistake for Ding. I had a lot of respect for him, but if he waited until two days before FA to release this story WITHOUT instruction from Jeanie then he's just lost a ton of leeway in that FO. It's a hit piece. If he DID get that command from Jeanie then I'm not mad at him, but then Jeanie is pretty damn devious. Either way this was a horrible look for Ding and he probably hurt some of his standing in the Lakers media scrum with it.
It really didn't make any sense for him to release this, from a journalistic point of view, two days before free agency, if it's not a hit piece. Consider this: if your article was really just an academic examination of the continuing foibles of the Lakers FO, why wouldn't you wait until after free agency to see how they do? Wouldn't that affect your story? Wouldn't you want to see how we do? To confirm whether or not we've turned a corner versus being stuck in the same rut? Publishing it now, before we get a chance to see where we are, shows just how naked and shameless this story really was (despite it probably being 100% accurate).
True so then it still comes back to two possibilities right? Either he made this decision himself with this story that Jeanie gave him months ago in effect helping tank our value before FA or... Jeanie told him to release it now in effect helping tank our value before FA. Which is better?
Saw it. Nothing we do not know already. Jim Buss apparently made the call on Walton. Got criticism for not interviewing more people. Apparently all the players going nuts over the Walton hire isn't enough cred. Judging it on hacks and media people are. All these media (bleep) can all eat (bleep) and die.
If anyone in the FO is upset about hiring Luke without hearing more interviews, those people themselves should be fired. Luke was the absolute right move at the right time. Any word to the contrary is stupidity.
Luke Walton has been Jim Buss' only good coaching hire. He had four complete duds, but this one was a home run. There is no way though that the FO didn't have a clue that Walton would be hired. I heard that was in the works more than a year ago from a credible source. If I heard it, they clearly knew.
