Since coming to the Los Angeles Lakers, LeBron James has seen the organization hire three different head coaches.
James started his Lakers tenure with Luke Walton who was fired after their first season together. Afterward, Los Angeles went on to hire Frank Vogel after discussions with other candidates like Monty Williams and Tyronn Lue. Although Vogel landed the job, he was widely considered to be the team’s third choice behind Williams and Lue.
Lue, in particular, seemed like the perfect hire for the Lakers because of his ties to the franchise and experience coaching James to a title during their time together with the Cleveland Cavaliers. However, Lue was only offered a low-ball offer for three years and he rejected it, later ending up with the L.A. Clippers.
In an appearance on The Stephen A. Smith Show, Lue revealed the Lakers’ offer was disrespectful because of their insistence on picking his coaching staff in addition to only offering three years:
“For me to be a championship coach, to take a three-year deal when everyone else is getting five-year deals and more money, and then you wanna pick my staff as well? I just thought that was a slap in the face,” Lue said.
Lue also revealed that James called him personally to try and get a deal done but declined his help because he wanted the Lakers to give him a respectful offer on their own:
“He called me twice… ‘What do I have to do? I said, ‘No, I want them to respect me… I don’t want to have to go to you to get my deal done; if they don’t respect me like I should be respected, then it’s okay.”
James has a close relationship with Lue and it made sense for the Lakers to chase after the latter, though it seems like they were unwilling to budge on their demands. While the franchise managed to win a title with Vogel, they eventually fired him and his replacement Darvin Ham.
There was a brief moment this past offseason when it seemed like the Lakers could rectify their mistake and hire Lue, but he ultimately signed an extension with the Clippers. The Lakers pivoted to JJ Redick, though Lue will always remain one of the franchise’s biggest what-if hires.
Lakers coach JJ Redick believes four days off will benefit LeBron James
JJ Redick has done about as well as one could have expected in his first year with the Lakers and he acknowledged that the team’s upcoming break should benefit James who’s dealing with foot soreness.
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