MANILA, Philippines – The Los Angeles Lakers hired Golden State Warriors assistant Luke Walton as new head coach for the 2016-17 NBA season, the team announced Saturday, April 30 (Friday, April 29 in Manila).
According to NBA.com, Walton, 36, will move to the Lakers after the Warriors finishes their season. Golden State is already through to the second round and awaiting a foe in either the Los Angeles Clippers or the Portland Trail Blazers.
"We're excited to bring Luke back to Los Angeles, where we feel he's going to start an outstanding coaching career," general manager Mitch Kupchak was quoted as saying. "He's one of the brightest young coaching minds in the game and we feel fortunate that he'll be leading the on-court future of our team."
The new hire comes just 5 days after the struggling Lakers fired Byron Scott, who led the team to a 17-65 record in Kobe Bryant's last season.
On Friday (Thursday in the US), Warriors coach Steve Kerr confirmed that the reigning NBA champions had told Kupchak they could meet Walton following their series win over the Houston Rockets on Wednesday.
Walton was a firm favorite with the Lakers having played on two NBA championship-winning teams during his 9 seasons as a player in Los Angeles.
He filled in for Kerr earlier this season and led the Warriors to a 39-4 record as the Golden State coach recovered from back surgery.
Although the wins were credited to Kerr under NBA rules, Walton is seen as an up-and-coming coaching talent. He had reportedly turned down an approach from the New York Knicks about their head-coaching job. – with reports from Agence France-Presse/Rappler.com