Jeanie Buss Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Jeanie Buss: Luke Walton “Doing A Terrific Job”

January 23rd, 2019 at 8:54am CST by Luke Adams

There’s a perception in Los Angeles and among many NBA observers that Lakers head coach Luke Walton is on the hot seat, but controlling owner Jeanie Buss said during an appearance on Zach Lowe’s Lowe Post podcast that’s not the case, as Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.com relays. According to Buss, “everyone in the organization” – including top decision-makers Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka – is behind Walton.

“We are doing everything we can to make sure that Luke is successful in his job. That’s our job,” Buss said. “I think he is doing a terrific job. Given the injuries that we’ve had, it’s a challenge and people forget that he has had two of our starters taken away from him and they’ve won really important games on the road, proving what is possible even without LeBron (James)… I think Luke has done an impressive job.”

Buss’s comments don’t come as a real surprise. Even earlier in the season, when Johnson reportedly “admonished” Walton for the Lakers’ slow start out of the gate, the head coach was always said to have the support of Buss, who would ultimately have the final say on any change. Johnson said back in November that no coaching change was planned during the season, and a report last week indicated that the Lakers continued to project support for Walton both publicly and privately.

Walton had the Lakers in position to make the playoffs up until James went down with the groin injury that has now sidelined him for nearly a month. Since then, the team has lost nine of 14 games and slipped to ninth in the Western Conference, albeit just a half-game behind the No. 8 Clippers.

Walton and the Lakers are expected to get some reinforcements soon. As ESPN’s Dave McMenamin outlines, Rajon Rondo is on track to return to the club’s lineup on Thursday vs. Minnesota, filling the hole at point guard created by injuries to Rondo and Lonzo Ball. James is moving closer to a return as well, having participated in five-on-zero play and shooting drills over the weekend, per Walton. However, LeBron isn’t expected to be ready for Thursday’s game.

Lakers Notes: Walton, Meeks, Ingram, Ball

January 14th, 2019 at 6:59pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Controlling owner Jeanie Buss holds the key to Luke Walton‘s future as head coach, Bill Oram of The Athletic opines. If team president Magic Johnson urges Buss to make a coaching change in the near future or at the end of the season, she would have to choose between her loyalty to Johnson and her faith in Walton, Oram continues. There is growing uneasiness about Walton’s job security following a loss to the woeful Cavaliers, making the team 3-7 with LeBron James sidelined by a groin injury. Johnson’s unpredictable, ultra-competitive nature and his concerns about the staff increase the possibility of him pushing Buss to make a move, Oram adds.

We have more on the Lakers:

Free agent shooting guard and former Laker Jodie Meeks is a potential roster addition as the team looks to improve its outside shooting, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin tweets. The career 37.2% 3-point shooter worked out for the Sixers on Monday. The Lakers, who have an open roster spot, rank 27th in long-range shooting at 33.5%.
Andre Ingram set a G League record for most career games played over the weekend, according to a G League tweet. Ingram, currently with the South Bay Lakers, played his 402nd game on Saturday. The 33-year-old guard made his NBA debut last season with the Lakers, appearing in two games.
Lonzo Ball would rather lead by example because he’s not as vocal as veterans like James, Rajon Rondo and Tyson Chandler, Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN reports. Ball has stepped up his efforts to be a leader with James and Rondo nursing injuries.

Pacific Notes: Lakers, Green, Cousins, Cauley-Stein

October 11th, 2018 at 6:27pm CST by JD Shaw

Lakers legend Kobe Bryant played a key role in bringing LeBron James to Los Angeles this summer, Sam Amick of The Athletic reveals in a new story.

Bryant, who spent his entire 20-season career with the Lakers, met with team owner Jeanie Buss in February of 2017 to deliver strong advice: Shake up the front office, start new and bring a new culture to the franchise.

“Jeanie, I know who we’re trying to get; we know who we’re trying to get, so that player is not going to come here with all of this s–t going on,” Bryant said, according to Amick. “It’s not going to happen. So if you do want to have that focus, and go after that player, then I’m telling you that you’ve gotta clean house, and you’ve gotta just reshuffle the deck and start anew. You have the new practice facility (the UCLA Health Training Center) that we’re just moving into (in the summer of 2017). We’ve got new management, and off we go. But that player is not coming here unless you do that.

“As a player, it’s like, listen, it’s a cultural thing. You’ve got to have the right culture around, especially for him at this stage of his career,” Bryant explained. “You don’t want to come to a team and deal with a bunch of bull—-, right? You don’t want to come here and be part of an organization where the walls are talking and stuff is getting out left and right and you have this camp and that camp. You don’t want to do that. So I said, ‘You’ve got to start anew.’”

Buss listened to Bryant’s advice, firing older brother Jim Buss and letting go of general manager Mitch Kupchak. In turn, the team promoted Magic Johnson to president of basketball operations and hired Rob Pelinka as new general manager. Fast forward to July of 2018, and the new-look Lakers convinced James to sign a free-agent contract.

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

Draymond Green doesn’t see the Warriors‘ dynasty ending anytime soon, telling ESPN’s Sam Alipour that if the team stays together, only old age can stop them.
DeMarcus Cousins has ramped up his conditioning drills, though it’s unclear when he’ll make his return to the court, Mark Medina of The Mercury News writes. “We’re literally taking it week-by-week,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “But he’s ramping up conditioning aspect of it. That’s a good sign.”
Kings center Willie Cauley-Stein could be in line for a new contract next summer, and The Athletic’s Jason Jones details how he can earn his big payday this season.

Lakers Rumors: Magic Johnson, Free Agency, George

June 26th, 2018 at 2:20pm CST by Luke Adams

No NBA team projects to have more cap room next week than the Lakers, who have long been considered the club most likely to make a splash during the 2018 free agent period. Speaking today to reporters though, Lakers president of basketball operations Magic Johnson dismissed the idea that he’s stressing his ability to deliver star free agents to Los Angeles in the coming days.

“I’m Magic Johnson,” Johnson said, per Bill Oram of The Athletic (Twitter link). “You know how many Finals I’ve been in? So you think I’m worried about this? I played against Larry Bird in the Finals. I played in nine Finals.”

As Johnson explains, he feels “no pressure” to land a marquee free agent or two next week, since he and the Lakers’ front office don’t consider 2018 the team’s only chance to make a major free agent addition. According to Johnson, the Lakers will remain “disciplined” and are prepared to retain their cap room for 2019 if free agency doesn’t play out like they hope this time around.

“We’re excited about free agency,” Johnson said, according to Mike Bresnahan of Spectrum SportsNet (Twitter link). “We know we had two summers to deal with. We have the cap space and flexibility. We’re looking forward to July but we’re not putting all our marbles into one summer.”

Here’s more on the Lakers:

Johnson may not be putting any pressure on himself during 2018’s free agent period, but he sounds like he fully expects the Lakers to make impact moves in at least one of the next two summers. Speaking to reporters today, the Lakers legend suggested he may even resign if the Lakers strike out in back-to-back summers in 2018 and 2019. “It’s going to be a two-summer thing for the Lakers,” Johnson said, per Oram (Twitter link). “This summer and next summer. That’s it. If I can’t deliver, I’m going to step down myself. [Lakers co-owner Jeanie Buss] won’t have to fire me, I’ll step away from it, because I can’t do this job.”
Buss said on Monday that she has “complete faith” in Johnson and GM Rob Pelinka as free agency nears, adding that she’d “really like” to see the Lakers in the playoffs next season. Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.com has the story, including more quotes from Buss.
Robin Lundberg of Sports Illustrated obtained a portion of an apparent Lakers recruiting pitch to Paul George. The leak includes a script for a voice-over that will seemingly be used in a video presentation to a free agent from Palmdale, George’s hometown.

Lakers Front Office Wary Of Tampering Possibility

June 20th, 2018 at 10:49pm CST by clarkcrum

Ramona Shelburne of ESPN is reporting that the Lakers, who have been fined for tampering twice in the past calendar year (links here), recently called an organizational meeting warning all employees about possible tampering ahead of the upcoming free agent signing period.

The Lakers, who are expected to play a key role during free agency this summer, also sent written notices to employees that referenced possible termination as punishment for anyone who does not adhere to NBA rules.

Per Shelburne, Lakers’ co-owner and governor Jeanie Buss called the meeting, which was led by president of basketball operations Magic Johnson who, somewhat ironically, was involved in both of the team’s prior tampering violations.

As our Hoops Rumors Glossary shows, the July Moratorium doesn’t allow free agent deals to become official until July 6. However, free agents are still permitted to negotiate with teams and agree to terms on new contracts during the moratorium. As such, the Lakers, as with the other 29 NBA franchises, aren’t allowed to begin negotiating with free agents until midnight on July 1.

Buss: Entire Lakers’ Organization Behind Luke Walton

January 24th, 2018 at 12:29pm CST by Luke Adams

Lakers ownership and management continue to voice their support for Luke Walton, with controlling owner Jeanie Buss the latest to praise the club’s head coach. As Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN details, Buss was asked on Tuesday whether Walton will remain the Lakers’ head coach through the season and the 2018 offseason, and she essentially dismissed the idea that it’d even be up for debate.

“Luke Walton is the Lakers’ coach, period,” Buss said. “There’s no worrying about it, there’s no speculation. He’s done a terrific job. He is somebody that the entire front office, the organization is behind.”

Walton’s job performance was questioned – most notably by LaVar Ball – when the Lakers lost nine consecutive games at the end of December and start of January. However, Walton’s Lakers have looked very good since snapping that streak. The club has won seven of its last nine games, including three in a row — L.A. is coming off a Tuesday night upset of the Celtics.

While the Lakers didn’t respond immediately to Ball’s criticisms earlier this month, Buss and Magic Johnson tweeted support for their head coach a week and a half ago, and Buss’ comments this week further cement Walton’s job security in Los Angeles. The Lakers’ private stance reportedly lines up with its public stance, as ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne has previously suggested that Walton’s job status was “not even a conversation” for the franchise.

Buss, Johnson Tweet Support For Luke Walton

January 13th, 2018 at 8:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

Lakers majority owner Jeanie Buss and team president Magic Johnson offered public support to coach Luke Walton today for the first time since last week’s disparaging comments from LaVar Ball, writes Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.

Buss went first, tweeting a photo of herself with GM Rob Pelinka and Walton, accompanied by the hashtag #InLukeWeTrust.

Johnson followed with a pair of tweets, reading “So proud of my @Lakers players and Coach Walton for winning their 4th game in a row against the Mavericks” (Twitter link) and “Coach Luke Walton has the @Lakers playing some of their best basketball of the season right now.” (Twitter link)

L.A. has won four straight games since Ball, the father of rookie point guard Lonzo Ball, claimed Walton has lost the team and that players no longer support him.

Rumors emerged Friday that the Lakers might have interest in former Grizzlies coach David Fizdale. Sources told Ramona Shelburne of ESPN that Buss was concerned about the situation and wanted to make her support for Walton clear.

“Jeanie has always been great,” Walton said. “There is no doubt that they support me. I haven’t seen the tweet, but again, I don’t have Twitter. But I know they support [me and the coaching staff].”

The front office tried to ignore LaVar Ball’s comments so it wouldn’t be seen as responding to the parent of a player. A Lakers source recently told Shelburne there’s “not even a conversation” about replacing Walton, who still has three seasons left on a five-year contract reportedly worth $25MM.

Magic Johnson Offers To Pay Tampering Fine Out Of His Salary

September 5th, 2017 at 2:19pm CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers received a significant fine last week for violating the NBA’s anti-tampering policy, and team president Magic Johnson wants that penalty taken out of his salary. As he tells Tania Ganguli of The Los Angeles Times, Johnson doesn’t want Lakers owner – and his good friend – Jeanie Buss to be on the hook for that $500K.

“We can’t say a lot but we will correct the situation,” Johnson said on Monday, per Ganguli. “It’s under my watch. I apologize to Jeanie, and that was the main thing. I told her she could take it out of my salary because I don’t want the Lakers to be paying that fine. … I don’t want her spending $500,000, because she didn’t do anything. That’s on me.”

Technically, Johnson wasn’t directly responsible for the Lakers receiving that $500K fine — although the rookie president discussed Paul George during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live earlier this year, the Lakers only received a warning from the NBA for those comments. The league levied a penalty on the team after an investigation revealed that GM Rob Pelinka had expressed interest in George to agent Aaron Mintz — that expression of interest directly to an agent is prohibited when a player is under contract with another club.

Nonetheless, Johnson takes responsibility for the misstep, noting that it happened under his watch. The Lakers president insists that the club won’t repeat that mistake in the future.

“We’re going to have meetings about it next week,” Johnson said. “I’m gonna always care about the Laker brand, the Laker fans, so I apologize to them as well. The main thing is we’re going to move forward. We got 95% everything’s going great. This is the one thing that went bad. … This is something we can correct. Adam [Silver] is a great friend of mine. I’m glad he was able to do his job. Now I’m gonna do my job.”

Lakers Under Investigation For Tampering

August 20th, 2017 at 2:21pm CST by Arthur Hill

2:21 PM: The Pacers have filed paperwork with the league claiming that the Lakers are guilty of tampering, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com, and the league will investigate the possibility of impermissible contact between Johnson and George.

Wojnarowski adds that the Lakers are denying the allegations and they expect to be cleared of any wrongdoing.

9:25 AM: The Pacers are expected to pursue tampering charges against the Lakers regarding Paul George, Peter Vecsey reports on his new pay site, Patreon.

An investigator for the NBA has contacted Lakers President Magic Johnson, GM Rob Pelinka and owner Jeanie Buss, according to Vecsey, asking for “any correspondence pertaining to” George, his agent Aaron Mintz and George’s parents.

The Indianapolis Star has reached out to the Pacers and the NBA for confirmation of the report, but neither has responded so far.

Mintz met with Pacers president Kevin Pritchard earlier this summer to inform him that George intended to opt out of his contract next year and planned to leave Indiana. A southern California native, George’s preference has long been rumored as signing with the Lakers. The Pacers found a soft trade market for George, with most of the league believing he is headed to L.A. next summer, and wound up dealing him to Oklahoma City in exchange for Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis.

If the Pacers are alleging tampering, they must believe the Lakers had behind-the-scenes contact with the All-Star forward that influenced his plans. L.A. has been been focusing on short-term contracts and is clearly setting up its roster to maximize cap room for next summer, but the league would have have to find concrete evidence of improper contact with George or his representatives to impose any penalties against the team.

Lakers Notes: Johnson, Zubac, George

April 24th, 2017 at 9:26pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Lakers owner Jeanie Buss discussed the team’s roster with Magic Johnson prior to handing him the team president role. At the time, Johnson told her that he didn’t see a star on the roster, as she told Jesse Williams on the Open Run Podcast (h/t Anthony Irwin of SB Nation).

“I asked him who he would build the team around,” Buss said. “He thought about it for a second and he said, ‘I don’t know if you have the player yet… I would build the team around Luke.’”

Johnson joined Los Angeles’ front office back in February. Here’s more on his team:

GM Rob Pelinka said that one of the Lakers‘ priorities this offseason will be to add a center who fits into today’s NBA, Serena Winters of Lakers Nation relays (Twitter links). Pelinka added that he views Ivica Zubac as “someone [the team] considers to be one of the pillars of the future.”
Pelinka said character will be a major factor when evaluating possible additions this summer, Winters passes along on Twitter. “I think going forward we’re going to really put a lot of weight into the character of a player,” the GM said. “What kind of person is he?”
Johnson will represent Los Angeles at next month’s lottery drawing, according to Mike Trudell of NBA.com. The Lakers have a 46.9% chance at landing a top-3 pick, as Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors details. They will owe the Sixers their first-round pick should it fall outside the top-3.
It’s well known that Johnson is a fan of Paul George and the Lakers may pursue the small-forward either this summer or next. George reportedly hasn’t been quiet about his interest in the team.