The Lakers have agreed to a contract extension with GM Rob Pelinka and promoted him to Vice President of Basketball Operations, Adrian Wojnarowski and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN report (via Twitter).
Pelinka, 50, received a five-year contract when the former player agent was originally hired by the Lakers in 2017. By signing LeBron James as a free agent in 2018 and trading for another superstar, Anthony Davis, this offseason, the Lakers have turned into a serious championship contender under Pelinka’s watch.
The length of the extension isn’t clear but it is for multiple seasons, Wojnarowski adds.
The Lakers confirmed the promotion in a press release.
“I’m extremely pleased with the work Rob has done in order to put this franchise in a position for success, “ Lakers owner Jeanie Buss said. “His strong leadership skills, as well as his commitment to building a winning culture, both on and off the court, have brought us one step closer to being a championship-caliber team and I look forward to our continued work together.”
Pelinka said shortly after the Davis deal was completed that anything but a championship wouldn’t be considered a successful season.
Lakers find there 3rd option
A shot to Magic’s ample ego. Love it.
It’s hard to argue with their success so far the season, but this seems like a mistake. Their 2018 free agency moves were a disaster, they gave up too much for Davis, and they haven’t actually won anything yet.
Why not wait a year to extend him?
Sit down houston homer. With barely anything on the market last year when they intially got lebron it was well known they were just filling out roster. This year all the vets he has signed have played great hence the 30-7 start. Just look at the talent they have drafted and moved since his arrival. Mo wagner, caruso, thomas bryant, kuzma, hart, to a lesser degree lonzo. Sure some never got the chance to shine here but the talent has always been there and just needed a chance. He has done a great job so far.
Love the player that gets labeled with “to a lesser degree” is the most talented of the bunch and the only that has a chance if being truly good and not just filler and hype.
Gotta love how some LA fans automatically label anyone who criticizes their GM as a Houston homer. While there are some Houston homers on here, Jason is not one of them. Not even close.
Moreover, I wouldn’t call being gifted AD and trading away a ton talent that would flourish elsewhere a strong selling point. Not saying he’s done a bad job per se, but there was certainly no reason to rush an extension with him. An earlier-than-expected playoff exit and your entire narrative gets flipped on its head from the perspective of Lakers fans.
Any extension should have waited until the conclusion of the playoffs.
Signing Lance Stephenson was one thing; paying him more than the minimum? Preposterous. Unforgivable, even.
And they added Rondo, who can’t shoot, which is kind of a critical skill if you play with LeBron. Oh and they gave away Zubac for reasons that still escape me.
Perhaps Magic was to blame for all of these poor decisions. But even if that’s true, it shows that Pelinka probably didn’t have as much impact on things as believed.
Either way, there’s no reason to extend him now.
I’ll also add that some of the good moves he did make were fairly obvious ones; Danny Green is a perfect example. And it’s also easier to attract those kinds of players in FA when you would have LeBron and AD on the roster already. A lesser franchise/roster wouldn’t have such easy calls to make.
2018 he tried the LeBron w Ingram Hart Lonzo Kuzma thing, they had a shot til LeBron got hurt. Not his fault.
Sometimes the best move a gm makes is no move. He didn’t bog down their cap room.
Every gm has good decision and bad decisions.
Good decisions- LeBron AD trade bringing in better shooters n defenders this year to short term deals.
Bad decisions- zubac trade Bullock trade and releasing Thomas Bryant.
Could be wrong but Kuzma trade is in his favor though he gave up Russel and not trading Brook Lopez before his walk year.
There’s good and bad with every gm. But you get your team to the dance and put together a contender, you’ll get an extension.
He needs to get A.D. resigned to a long term deal.
It will be an unmitigated disaster if the Lakers lose AD.
Pelinka’s choices have been uneven in quality and his biggest strength is in letting Lebron be the goal and then giving him say. Griffin now with the Pels never liked that idea and did not commit to it and the decline began.
I always thought he looked like someone and I finally figured it out: Rob Lowe
Wow. Lakers owners have no clue do they? Pelinka didn’t get Lebron, he chose the Lakers. He traded half decade of picks for AD. A diligent owner would of waited for a ring before giving an extension. Lakers front office just can’t help it.
Rob didn’t build this Laker team, LeBron did. He just handled the paperwork.
The VP title and an extension is a good fit for him long term. Wish him all the best.
In 2-3 years LeBron will be the President and a solid minority owner.
It’s good for the 2 of them to be working this well together now.
I’d post a comment but I understand I need Lebrons approval first. MJ best EVER