The Los Angeles Lakers are in search of a new head coach after parting ways with Luke Walton, who is already signed on to coach the Sacramento Kings. Luke Walton‘s tenure as the head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers lasted only two seasons as Walton and the team decided to part ways after the 2018-2019 season. It took less than 24 hours for Walton to be named the new head coach of the Sacramento Kings, while the Los Angeles Lakers will begin their search. If the Lakers have already signed their new head coach by the time you are reading this you can still apply the things we list and determine whether or not the new coach displays these traits. It might take the Lakers some time, though, as one of the frontrunners for the job is Philadelphia 76ers assistant coach, Monty Williams. News of a signing probably won’t break until the 76ers are out of the playoffs. The other frontrunner for the job is former Cleveland Cavaliers head coach, Ty Lue. And while it may seem like the job is already down to two people, there could always be the sleeper pick, late-fire option that the Lakers consider. Those are the two the Lakers are set to interview first and the team has to make sure that whoever they hire have these three traits. If not, it is best to find a different candidate.<doc-sep>Luke Walton was confirmed as the new head coach of the Sacramento Kings on Monday, marking a swift return to the NBA just days after parting company with the Los Angeles Lakers. Walton, whose departure from the Lakers was announced on Friday, was rapidly identified by Sacramento as their preferred successor to Dave Joerger, who was fired last Thursday. ADVERTISEMENT The Kings and Walton started talks on Saturday, less than 24 hours after the coach’s exit from the Lakers. “I have known Luke for many years and I am so excited to welcome him and his family to the Sacramento Kings,” said Kings General Manager Vlade Divac in a statement. Luke Walton is going to love coaching the Kings. The Lakers attempted more threes than Sac — but 𝒏𝒐𝒏𝒆 of their players with 200+ attempts shot above 35%. Hield (42%), Bjelica (40%), Barnes (41%), Bogi (36%) and Fox (37%) 𝙖𝙡𝙡 shot better from deep. — Alex Kramers (@alexkramers) April 15, 2019 “I look forward to his leadership on the court as we work to build a winning culture for many years to come.” Terms of Walton’s contract with the Kings were not revealed. The 39-year-old coach joins Sacramento after a disappointing end to his tenure with the Lakers, which saw them fail to make the playoffs for a sixth straight season despite the arrival last year of superstar LeBron James. Walton arrives in Sacramento after three years with the Lakers which saw the NBA giants improve year-on-year. ADVERTISEMENT However, his position with the iconic franchise had been the subject of intense speculation for several months as the team faded from playoff contention. Prior to his stint with the Lakers, Walton had been an assistant to Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr from 2014 to 2016. He led the Warriors to a 39-4 start in the 2015-2016 season when Kerr was sidelined with a back problem.<doc-sep>Gregory Shamus/Getty Images The Los Angeles Lakers are looking to interview former Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue and current Philadelphia 76ers assistant Monty Williams for their open head-coaching position. Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reported the Lue news, while ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski provided the information on Williams. Lue, 41, led the Cavs to an NBA Finals championship and three Eastern Conference titles from 2015-2018. Cleveland went a combined 169-103 in the regular season and playoffs under Lue. He played for the Lakers from 1998-2001 and was a part of two NBA championship teams in L.A. Williams, 47, has five years of NBA head-coaching experience; he led the New Orleans Hornets/Pelicans from 2010-2015. He led New Orleans to two postseason appearances and amassed a 175-229 record. Both men appear to be the favorites to replace Luke Walton, who mutually parted ways with the franchise on Friday after three seasons at the helm. On Saturday, Walton reportedly agreed to become the new head coach for the Sacramento Kings, per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. Wojnarowski in particular called Lue a "strong frontrunner" for the gig. Lue has a connection with Lakers superstar LeBron James, who played on the Cavs during all but six games of his head-coaching tenure. Video Play Button Videos you might like James and Lue got along well, as evidenced by the player's remarks following his former coach's firing after a 0-6 start this season: "He put us in position to win, he put us in position to succeed," James said. "And more importantly, he gave—all the onus was on the players. He gave us the responsibility to go out and do what we needed to do to win ball games. And that led us to—while he was at the helm—three Eastern Conference Finals, three Finals, one championship." The Williams interview request could be in relation to the team's reported desire to land New Orleans Pelicans big man Anthony Davis. Williams coached Davis for three seasons in New Orleans. The two were clearly close: The Associated Press also said Williams had a "strong relationship" with Davis when the coach was fired in 2015. Davis requested a trade on Jan. 28. One did not materialize before the Feb. 7 deadline, but he can become a free agent after next season and could conceivably sign with the Lakers even if the Pels decide to trade him elsewhere. Hiring Williams could be a selling point for Davis and ease his transition to the team should he don the purple and gold. The next Lakers head coach will be the team's sixth this decade.<doc-sep>
Earlier this week, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported that former Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue and Philadelphia 76ers assistant Monty Williams would be seriously considered to replace Luke Walton as head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers. So far, that’s held true. Following a report by Wojnarowski stating the Lakers have been given permission by the Sixers to speak to Williams, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports broke the news that they have also reached out to Lue: Yahoo Sources: The Lakers have reached out to Tyronn Lue regarding their head coach position and are expected to meet at some point next week. — Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) April 13, 2019 The 41-year-old Missouri native is reportedly considered the frontrunner for the job and it’s easy to see why. Not only does Lue have a rapport with the Lakers’ lone superstar, LeBron James, but he also has ties to the organization as a player, which seems to be important to this team specifically. He’s also been part of a championship roster, both as a player and a coach, so he knows what it takes to win at the highest level. However, Lue’s most relevant skill to the Lakers’ head coaching job is his ability to build an offense around James. In each of the three years Lue coached James, the Cavaliers had a top-five offense. Sure, James made Lue look good, but Lue put him a position to succeed with the help of the front office, who surrounded James with 3-point shooters. With James under contract for at least two more seasons, the front office’s priority should be trying to replicate that success. Defensively, Lue’s reputation is a mixed bag. In his first season in Cleveland, the Cavaliers had a top-10 defense, allowing just 103.9 points per 100 possessions, but in his last year with the team, Lue coached the Cavs to the second-worst defensive rating in the NBA. And yet, James carried that team to the NBA Finals. It’s possible that more names will leak out within the coming days, but it seems like Lue is exactly what the Lakers are looking for, even if he’s not the best head coaching candidate available. For more Lakers talk, subscribe to the Silver Screen and Roll podcast feed on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher or Google Podcasts. You can follow Christian on Twitter at @RadRivas.