A statement last month indicated that Jeanie Buss is expected to remain the Lakers‘ governor “for the foreseeable future” even after the team is sold to incoming owner Mark Walter. That “foreseeable future” will span quite some time, according to Sam Amick of The Athletic, who hears from a source that the agreement between the two sides calls for Buss to remain in her governor role for at least the next five seasons.
We have more on the Lakers:
- Speaking to reporters at his introductory press conference on Tuesday, new Lakers center Deandre Ayton said that signing with Los Angeles “feels like a video game” and that he doesn’t intend to take the opportunity for granted, as Mark Medina of RG.org relays. Ayton called new teammate Luka Doncic a “once-in-a-generation player” and cited Doncic’s and LeBron James‘ career assist numbers as one reason why he expects to thrive in L.A. “They turn (their teammates) into superstars,” Ayton said, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN. “They make them bigger than their roles, they make them very important on the floor.”
- Ayton also said on Tuesday that he’s motivated by critics who have questioned his effort, focus, and maturity, according to Broderick Turner of The Los Angeles Times. “It fuels me,” Ayton said. “It fuels me up completely. And it’s a different type of drive that I’ve been wanting to express for a long time. I think this is the perfect timing, here in the purple and gold. And it’s a platform that I cannot run from. I can show what I really am and just be around some greats to really emphasize that for me as well. It is a lot of fuel in me to prove to the whole world.”
- After social media posts revealed that LeBron James visited the Cavaliers‘ practice facility last week, the star forward clarified (via Twitter) that it’s an annual occurrence for him, since he lives and trains in the area during the offseason. Still, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said during an appearance on ESPN Cleveland (Twitter video link) that LeBron knew what he was doing when he was photographed in the Cavs’ building amidst speculation about his future. “LeBron absolutely knows that he will cause a wave with these social media things,” Windhorst said (hat tip to Adam Zagoria of NJ.com). “On one hand, he is just coming home for the holiday, he is just doing something that he has done numerous times in the past. On the other hand, by doing what’s he’s doing, he’s absolutely poking the bear and being passive aggressive. And by the way, the Lakers are being passive-aggressive back at LeBron. They did not announce his option pick-up. So they’re both acting in the same way. Now, how is this going to get resolved? And my answer to you, in full honesty, is I don’t know.”