Ever since the Los Angeles Lakers parted ways with head coach Frank Vogel at the end of the season, there have been a handful of names mentioned as potential replacements. One of those brought up regularly has been current Utah Jazz head coach Quin Snyder.
Snyder did an excellent job in turning the Jazz into one of most consistently good teams in the NBA over the past few seasons. While he does have one more year remaining on his contract with Utah, he has reportedly refused to sign an extension leading to speculation about his future with the franchise.
It is well known that the Lakers have interest in bringing him back to the franchise as he did serve as an assistant with the team during the 2011-12 season under Mike Brown. But according to Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report, the feeling doesn’t appear to be mutual:
And while the Lakers are known to have strong interest in Snyder, pessimism persists around the NBA and several sources familiar with Snyder’s thinking that Los Angeles does not present an attractive landing spot for the veteran coach. He is more often linked as a possible eventual replacement for Gregg Popovich in San Antonio.
The attractiveness of the Lakers head coaching position has been called into question previously and there are some legitimate reasons why. There are a lot of questions surrounding the roster with the most notable ones being what the Lakers will do with Russell Westbrook and his contract this offseason, as well as what is the future of LeBron James as he enters the final season of his contract.
It is also worth noting that Snyder reportedly did not like the way the Lakers handled the firing of Vogel as news came out on social media immediately following the Lakers’ regular-season finale before Vogel could even return to the locker room and enjoy the victory. That likely didn’t sit well with other coaching candidates as well.
Snyder is viewed as one of the better young coaches in the NBA and to be mentioned as a potential replacement to Gregg Popovich, one of the greatest ever, is an indictment of how much Snyder is respected. The Lakers are smart in trying to go after him, but all signs are pointing to him not sharing the same interest.
Mark Jackson doesn’t have strong chance to land Lakers job
Another name mentioned as the next potential Lakers head coach is current ESPN commentator and former Golden State Warriors head coach Mark Jackson. Though he hasn’t coached since splitting from the Warriors in 2014, Jackson has received a ton of credit for helping build the foundation for the Warriors dynasty of the late-2010s.
But the latest rumblings suggest that he is unlikely to ultimately land the job with the Lakers, though he will be on the list should he not land the Sacramento Kings head coaching position in which he seemingly has a great chance of doing.
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