As the Los Angeles Lakers continue to seek out a new head coach, Hall of Famer Kevin Garnett is ripping them by implying that their efforts shouldn’t be taken seriously.
The reason for Garnett’s dismissive attitude toward the Lakers is based on reports that the team has narrowed its search to three candidates. That trio consists of former Portland Trail Blazers head coach Terry Stotts, Milwaukee Bucks assistant Darvin Ham and Golden State Warriors assistant Kenny Atkinson.
Both Stotts and Atkinson have past head coaching experience. Meanwhile, Ham is looking for his first top job opportunity in the NBA and previously served as a Lakers assistant.
Stotts’ tenure with the Trail Blazers spanned from 2012 to 2021, and he had a regular season winning percentage of .558. However, he was only able to lead the Blazers to the second round of the playoffs three times.
Atkinson served as head coach of the Nets from 2016 to 2020 and struggled during much of his time with the team. He compiled an overall regular season winning percentage of .383 and led the Nets to just one playoff appearance.
After Ham’s two seasons with the Lakers from 2011 to 2013, he moved on to serve as an assistant with the Atlanta Hawks from 2013 to 2018.
Over the past four years, Ham has been with the Bucks and was part of the coaching staff that led them to the 2021 NBA title.
Garnett is certainly entitled to his opinion on the respective merits of each of the reported coaching candidates. However, it’s likely that the Lakers aren’t paying any attention to him and will make their eventual choice at some point in the near future.
