Lakers Rumors: Jason Kidd Will Be Among Candidates If Luke Walton Is Fired

Matthew Moreno
2 Min Read
Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

After cycling through head coaches on a near annual basis, the Los Angeles Lakers hoped to find stability with Luke Walton when he was hired in April 2016. However, an overhaul of the team’s front office the following year cast some doubt on that.

Although president of basketball operations Magic Johnson and general manager Rob Pelinka did not hire Walton, he had the support of Lakers owner Jeanie Buss. She’s been unwavering in her backing of Walton, even as pressure and criticism mounted throughout the season.

With the Lakers missing the playoffs for a sixth consecutive year, the widespread expectation is the team will part with Walton at the end of the season.

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Jason Kidd will be among the options the Lakers consider if they do need to find a replacement for Walton:

A report in January suggested there was mutual interest between Kidd and the Lakers. Kidd coached one season with the Brooklyn Nets, then three full years with the Milwaukee Bucks before getting fired 45 games into a fourth season.

Although he won a championship as a player by helping the Dallas Mavericks defeat LeBron James and the Miami Heat, Kidd’s track record and reputation as a head coach brings about its own set of questions.

Matthew Moreno is a journalist from Whittier, Calif., who is a credentialed reporter and is currently the Managing Editor of DodgerBlue.com and LakersNation.com. In addition to covering Los Angeles Dodgers and Los Angels Lakers games, Matthew has a strong passion for keeping up to date with the sneakerhead culture. It began with Michael Jordan and Air Jordan shoes, and has carried over to Kobe Bryant's signature line with Nike. Matthew previously was the lead editor and digital strategist at Dodgers Nation, and the co-editor and lead writer at Reign of Troy, where he covered USC Trojans Football. Matthew graduated from California State Long Beach University with a major in journalism and minor in communications. Contact: matt@mediumlargela.com