Madsen was a logical choice as head coach after he spent a season as an assistant under Johnny Dawkins at Stanford and his prior playing days with the Lakers.
However, according to Sam Amick of USA Today, Madsen received a promotion to the big leagues:
“A person with knowledge of the situation said Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni is adding former Lakers forward Mark Madsen as an assistant coach.”
Since the Lakers were eliminated from the playoffs, head coach Mike D’Antoni has lost all of his assistant coaches, besides his brother Dan.
Madsen is slated to take Chuck Person’s role on the staff as he will primarily handle the duties of coaching the big men. It will be interesting to see who he coaches, as it was reported earlier that Dwight Howard is unlikely to return to the Lakers.
During his time with the Lakers, Madsen was known more for his dance moves then his play on the court, but filled a valuable role of being a great teammate during championship seasons.
With another addition to the staff, D’Antoni must fill the other vacancies as he lost out on potential lead assistant Alvin Gentry, who decided to go to the Clippers.
Welcome back Mad Dog.