On April 11, Beijing time, the Lakers ushered in the challenge of the last opponent of the regular season, the Nuggets, and because they had missed the playoffs in advance, the Lakers' big three also missed all subsequent games. Today's showdown with the Nuggets, both sides sent their own substitutes to play, and the Purple and Gold Army relied on the excellent performances of Munch and Reeves to finally reverse the opponent 146-141, ending their disappointing season with a wave of two consecutive wins. Shortly after the game ended, it was reported that Vogel had completed the last game of the Lakers' coaching career and was expected to officially announce the news tomorrow.
Although Vogel later said at the press conference that he did not know about his dismissal, and also deliberately exploded foul language, but as far as the Lakers' poor performance this season, his dismissal is indeed a matter of time sooner or later. At present, there is no clear conclusion about the new coach of the Lakers, which also makes many fans begin to think boldly, can the core of the team LeBron James concurrently serve as the player and manager of the team?
Throughout the history of the league, there have been "special cases" of players and managers, dating back to the 66-67 season, when the Green Army's meritorious coach Auerbach resigned as head coach, and his beloved apprentice Bill Russell became the team's new head coach, and Russell was still a player in the squad at that time, which meant that he had to be both a player and a manager.
Although Russell's first season as the team manager did not qualify for the Finals and stopped in the East Finals, in the following season, Russell led the team to eliminate the Lakers 4-2 in the Finals, and in the 68-69 season, he once again helped the team reach the Finals, also facing the old enemy Purple and Gold Army, this time the Greenshirts won with seven difficulties, russell also helped Celtic win two consecutive championships as a player and manager. After winning the two consecutive championships, Russell announced his retirement and also stepped down as the team's manager.
With Russell's precedent, James can indeed try the dual identity of player and manager, as the well-deserved core of this purple and gold team, James will have enough authority whether it is on the court or off the field in the dressing room. While his career has never challenged the experience of being a coach, for james, who is already 37 years old, if he really wants to devote himself to coaching later, he can really test the waters ahead of time next season. Before there was news that the Lakers are considering hiring NCAA University of Michigan coach Zhu Wan Howard to become the team's new manager, and let the veteran Rondo who has helped the team win the championship in 20 years as an assistant coach, if Uncle Huo is not willing to accept the Lakers' olive branch, old Zhan can indeed consider sitting on this head coach position, as for the assistant coach, it is really possible to let Rondo try.
Whether the Purple and Gold Army can have such boldness ultimately depends on whether James is willing to gamble. In the case that his career is already in the countdown, if James can't do something in the coaching position, not only may he be late, but he may even say goodbye to the championship directly, after all, a "wizard" like Russell, throughout the history of the NBA, only he can do it.
(Luo Treasurer)