Los Angeles Lakers’ coaching candidate Byron Scott has a ‘great’ relationship with Kobe Bryant
Since firing head coach Mike D’Antoni, the Los Angeles Lakers have taken their time in the search for a new coach.
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It now looks like the search is heading into full swing.
The Lakers have already interviewed Mike Dunleavy, Sr. and spoke with Kurt Rambis on Tuesday. They will meet with Alvin Gentry on Wednesday and Lionel Hollins on Thursday.
Another potential candidate, former Lakers’ player Byron Scott, has been campaigning for the job and believes his relationship with Kobe Bryant should help him get the gig.
“I think the Kobe relationship is going to play a big part,” Scott, who currently works as an analyst for the Lakers’ television network, told USA TODAY Sports by phone Tuesday via Sam Amick. “Again, I think I’ve got a hand up on (the job) because of our relationship. We get along extremely well. Kobe knows all about me and what I’m about. He knows that I’m an old-school coach who’s very demanding on the defensive end and knows that defense and rebounding wins championships, so I think from that point of view we see eye to eye.
“Our relationship is great. We talked over the summer. We text each other. His ideas on the game of basketball and my ideas on the game of basketball are a lot alike, so we share a lot of the same views when it comes to the way the game should be played. So to me, it’s going to be fun.”
Scott has coached the New Jersey Nets (Brooklyn), New Orleans Hornets (Pelicans) and Cleveland Cavaliers. He has a career regular season record of 416-521 and is 33-24 in the postseason.