Lakers hire David Fizdale as assistant coach, replacing Jason Kidd in move endorsed by LeBron James

The Los Angeles Lakers have hired David Fizdale to replace Jason Kidd as an assistant coach.

With Jason Kidd leaving Frank Vogel’s bench to go lead the Dallas Mavericks, the Los Angeles Lakers have hired former Memphis Grizzlies and New York Knicks head coach David Fizdale to replace him, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

While his two initial runs as an NBA head coach did not go over well, Fizdale’s best coaching success came as the Miami Heat‘s top assistant under Erik Spoelstra.

One notable player from that era of Heat basketball who has a prominent role on the Lakers these days is All-NBA forward LeBron James. This is the exact hire the Lakers needed to make to effectively replace losing Kidd.

David Fizdale Lakers fit

Though probably overqualified for the role, getting a former two-time NBA head coach and proven top assistant on the bench will help the Lakers in many ways next season.

While Fizdale’s ability to lead a team long-term is questionable at best, this is a role he should be able to thrive on Vogel’s staff. If this hiring has James’ endorsement, then it should not be an issue at all for the Lakers.

David Fizdale likely was endorsed by LeBron James

Another interesting wrinkle here is when Fizdale and James worked together on the Heat in the early 2010s, Vogel was having great success in his first run as an NBA head coach with the Indiana Pacers. Hiring Fizdale seems to be in line with James wanting to align many of the best coaches from that era of the NBA, regardless of which side of the parkade floor they occupied at that time.

Losing Kidd to the Mavericks was tough, but the Lakers made a great hire to bring in Fizdale.