"I know Jeff Van Gundy wouldn't take that headache" - Stephen A. Smith gives his opinion on which coach the LA Lakers should hire this summer
Stephen A. Smith believes that the LA Lakers coaching job is too much of a headache for Jeff Van Gundy or any new coach.
The LA Lakers continue their difficult coaching search. Finding the perfect candidate is critical to the team's future with LeBron James as the aging superstar's career approaches its end in Los Angeles.
The championship window is closing for the Lakers. Their coaching choice will need to be someone who can win at least one more before LeBron retires or leaves to play for the team that drafts his son.
ESPN's Stephen A. Smith believes that some candidates for the job can win a championship with the current roster. One of the candidates that Stephen A. Smith likes is Jeff Van Gundy, but Van Gundy won't want to deal with it. Smith said:
"Me personally, I would think Doc Rivers, Mark Jackson, or Jeff Van Gundy. And I know Jeff Van Gundy wouldn't take that headache. Jeff Van Gundy is living a very good life and he's like 'I ain't got time for no headaches,' that's what he strikes me as doing."
Jeff Van Gundy's role as an analyst and commentator for ESPN and the NBA is a position that Van Gundy has held for fifteen years. He seems unlikely to want to leave that role to return to coaching with the LA Lakers.
For the LA Lakers, the glitz and glam of the city may entice some coaches to leave their current positions, either in broadcasting or on different teams. However, several other coaches have shown no interest in making the move.
Jeff Van Gundy and the other coaches that Stephen A. Smith mentioned are in positions where they can take a job they desire rather than taking any job available. They will only take the ideal situation.
Jeff Van Gundy and the LA Lakers may be better off without each other.
While Stephen A. Smith may list Jeff Van Gundy as one of the candidates for the LA Lakers coaching position, the move would likely be detrimental. Jeff Van Gundy has been out of the coaching ranks for 15 years and has not had a team reach the finals this century.
Jeff Van Gundy has lived an amazing life but it still blows my mind we haven’t seen him coach NBA basketball since 2007…
While Van Gundy has shown that he still understands the game as part of ESPN's commentary team, transitioning back into coaching will take time. Time is something he and the Lakers do not have to spend.
As the Lakers coaching search nears its end, Van Gundy and the team are wise to avoid working together.