Getty The Lakers' bench against the Sixers
The Los Angeles Lakers‘ season has gone so poorly that many pundits believe head coach Frank Vogel should be fired in the offseason.
Vogel led the Lakers to the 2020 championship in his first year at the helm, but the purple and gold have underachieved this season despite having LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook.
During the Lakers’ title run in 2020, the team defeated the Portland Trail Blazers, Houston Rockets, Denver Nuggets and Miami Heat. Nuggets head coach Michael Malone has a rapport with LeBron since he was an assistant coach on the Cleveland Cavaliers from 2005-06 to 2009-10, and according to Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports, Malone could have wound up on the Lakers and LeBron’s short-list this summer if Vogel was let go had Denver not signed him to a multiyear contract extension.
New Wind Chimes on Michael Malone’s extension:
If no deal was agreed to, a source close to the Nuggets told DNVR that Malone could have wound up on the Lakers and LeBron’s short-list this summer if they fire Frank Vogel.
Luckily for Denver he’s staying.
Malone had one year left on his contract with the Nuggets after this season. He won’t be on the Lakers’ radar anymore and that’s a shame since he’s one of the best coaches in the NBA and someone LeBron has great admiration for.
LeBron, Malone Share Mutual Respect
When the Lakers and Nuggets met in the 2020 Western Conference Finals, LeBron and Malone spoke glowingly about each other.
“When you work hard on your craft, you see others working just as hard on their craft, it becomes organic and it becomes mutual respect,” LeBron said in September 2020. “I know how much Coach (Malone) put into our schemes, put into our productivity, put into what we needed to do to go out and win ballgames when we were together in Cleveland. I saw that.”
Added Malone: “The minutes he’s playing, how effective he is on both ends of the floor, and the impact he has on both ends of the floor, his will to win is just incredible. I think he’ll probably wind up guarding Nikola (Jokic) this series, like they put Kawhi (Leonard) on Nikola last series. LeBron is all about doing whatever it takes to win the game.”
The Lakers defeated the Nuggets in five games in the 2020 Western Conference Finals. In Game 5, LeBron put up 38 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists to close out the series and Malone was in awe of his former player.
Malone on LeBron in 2020 WCF
LeBron averaged 27.0 points, 10.4 rebounds and 9.0 assists against the Nuggets in the 2020 Western Conference Finals. Malone, who watched the King grow on the Cavaliers, marveled at the Lakers superstar.
“When you just step back and marvel at what LeBron is doing at this stage of his career, how he continues to find ways to improve and get better and take whatever team he’s on to new heights, that defines his greatness,” Malone said.
It will be interesting to see what the Lakers do with Vogel this summer. Los Angeles is in 10th place in the Western Conference standings, but its only a half-game ahead of the San Antonio Spurs.
If LeBron and Co. fall to 11th place, they won’t even make the play-in tournament and Vogel may get fired since the team had the second-best odds to win the title this season in the preseason.