Lakers claim ‘no done deal’ with Byron Scott
By Mike Dyce
There was a report that the Los Angles Lakers had found their new head coach in Byron Scott. Now there is a new report out that says the Lakers and Scott have not reached an official agreement.
From Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times:
"The Lakers continued to negotiate with Byron Scott to be their coach but had not reached an official agreement as of Saturday evening, according to a person familiar with the situation.The Lakers were quick to downplay an ESPN.com report that they had given Scott a four-year, $17-million deal with a team option for the fourth year.“There is no done deal,” said a person who requested anonymity because of the fluidity of the situation."
This doesn’t mean that the two sides aren’t working towards a deal and they’re certainly working out details. It would be Scott’s fourth team as a coach and he is certainly acting like a deal is done.
“It feels fantastic,” he told Jim Hill of KCBS-TV. “This is a dream come true. I always wanted to coach the Lakers, especially when I got to coaching. It’s so unreal. I have to thank [general manager] Mitch [Kupchak], Jeanie and Jim Buss to give me this opportunity.”
Scott played with the Lakers in the 1980s and played a role in three of their five NBA championships during the decade. Scott was also a teammate of Kobe Bryant’s during the 1996-97 season, Bryant’s rookie year.