Since the Los Angeles Lakers fired head coach Luke Walton, general manager Rob Pelinka and company have been interviewing potential candidates.
Out of the four candidates which included Miami Heat assistant coach Juwan Howard and former Milwaukee Bucks head coach Jason Kidd, the Lakers interviewed former Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue and Philadelphia 76ers assistant coach Monty Williams twice during this process.
While the Lakers reportedly were split on offering the job to Lue or Williams, the latter essentially made a decision for them by agreeing to a five-year deal with the Phoenix Suns.
Now, the Lakers are focused on Lue to replace Walton and have ‘no plans’ to interview new candidates, according to Adrian Wojnarowski and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN:
The Lakers are proceeding toward an offer to Ty Lue in the coming days, and have no plans to introduce new candidates into the head coaching search process, league sources tell @ramonashelburne and me.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) May 3, 2019
Since Walton’s firing, Lue has been considered a frontrunner for the team’s head coaching job. While there will be a certain perception about this potential hiring, the ultimate goal was to hire the best candidate and many feel it is Lue.
After winning one championship in three consecutive NBA Finals appearances, it appears Lue and LeBron James will reunite in Los Angeles. Should it become official, the next step for the Lakers is properly constructing a roster that fits Lue’s system — which will likely mean three-point shooters.