Getty Los Angeles Lakers coach Luke Walton
The Los Angeles Lakers and head coach Luke Walton decided to split after a disappointing 37-45 record this season. The news was first reported by The Athletic’s Shams Charania, who pointed out that the two sides “mutually parted.”
While this isn’t all that surprising, it appears there’s a chance that Walton may not be on the free-agent coaching market for long. As Marc Stein of the New York Times revealed previously, the Sacramento Kings reportedly have interest in Walton.
Amid reports that Kings coach Dave Joerger’s job is in jeopardy, league sources say that Sacramento would have interest in Luke Walton should they decide to go through with a coaching change
Shortly after that report came to light, The Athletic’s Sam Amick reported that the Lakers coach would be “the clear frontrunner” if he were available.
Can confirm @wojespn report that Kings GM Vlade Divac will fire coach Dave Joerger today. Lakers coach Luke Walton – if available – is the clear frontrunner here, per sources. Former New Orleans coach Monty Williams is also a strong candidate, as is Spurs asst. Ettore Messina.
Considering Walton is now free to head wherever he chooses, it would make sense for him to wind up with the Kings. Overall, it would be an interesting fit and one that could benefit the former Lakers coach, so let’s take a deeper dive into it.
Luke Walton’s Outlook as Kings Potential Coach
With the Kings fresh off a season in which they went 39-43, the arrow is pointing up in Sacramento. This win mark is the best for the franchise since the 2005-06 season, which is also the last time they made the NBA playoffs. If Walton were hired, he would be stepping into a very good situation with a team that boasts a young core and an impressive amount of talent.
The Kings were just outside of the 2019 NBA Playoff picture this season, and could certainly make the leap next year. Beyond that, they have almost their entire core under contract through next season. According to Basketball-Reference, the following players remain under contract in 2019-20:
- Harrison Barnes (player option)
- Bogdan Bogdanovic
- Marvin Bagley
- Nemanja Bjelica
- De’Aaron Fox
- Buddy Hield
- Yogi Ferrell
- Harry Giles
- Caleb Swanigan
- Frank Mason
Center Willie Cauley-Stein is set to become a free agent so the Kings will need to make a decision on whether to push to re-sign him or not.
Luke Walton Likely to Interview for Kings Opening
As The Athletic and Amick also reported, Kings general manager Vlade Divac will now reach out to Walton to set up an interview with the former Lakers coach. He also confirms that Walton is indeed the first choice for the opening.
We’ll update more on this story as it comes, but assuming Walton has interest in the job, there appears to be a strong chance that he could become the next head coach of the Kings. As for the Lakers, their interest has locked on Tyronn Lue and Monty Williams, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Sixers assistant Monty Williams joins Ty Lue as the central candidates in the Lakers search, league sources tell ESPN. Process is expected to center on them.
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