Report: Lakers extended contract for crucial member of franchise

The Los Angeles Lakers have not had a very busy offseason when it comes to changes made to the team’s roster, but the same cannot be said for the team’s coaching staff.

Earlier this offseason, the team hired new head coach Darvin Ham. He’s made a number of hires to his staff as well. However, one coach that will remain on the team’s staff from the previous regime is Phil Handy.

In fact, according to a Tuesday report, the Lakers have extended Handy’s contract. He only had one year left on his current deal prior to the extension.

Handy began his tenure as an assistant coach with the Lakers prior to the 2019-20 season. He was on the team’s staff when it won the 2020 NBA Finals.

That contributed to the incredible streak that Handy had at the time in which he had gone to six consecutive NBA Finals.

He had gone to four straight with LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. He then won a title with the Toronto Raptors in 2019 and another with the Lakers in the following season.

Now, Handy will play a role in trying to help the Lakers bounce back from an incredibly disappointing 2021-22 campaign. Though the Lakers entered last season with title aspirations, they ended up failing to even make the play-in tournament.

That failure was likely the major factor that contributed to the end of the past coaching regime.

Now, Ham, Handy and the rest of the Lakers coaching staff will try to figure out how to overcome what went wrong last season. That will be made especially difficult considering the fact that the roster from last season remains primarily intact.

If the Lakers are able to bounce back and enjoy a deep playoff run, the coaching staff will surely be applauded for a job well done.