The Washington Wizards have hired former Thunder head coach Scott Brooks to the same position according to the Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski. According to Woj, he has signed a five year deal worth 35 million dollars.
The move is significant for the Lakers as they lose another potential candidate should they decide to move on from Byron Scott. Brooks was an especially intriguing case as it was reported earlier this week that he was interested in accepting the Lakers job.
Brooks was one of the more sought-after candidates on the open market with the Rockets also rumored to be interested in the coach. His reputation as a good developer of young, talented players as well as his great relationship with impending free agent Kevin Durant perhaps outweighed criticisms regarding his predictable offensive schemes.
Meanwhile, the Lakers continue to wait with no statements made about whether Scott will continue to be with the team going forward. With Tom Thibodeau and Brooks (Thibs was also reportedly very interested in coaching the Lakers) now off the market, the list of candidates is running thin.
Los Angeles still has a chance to hire the likes of Luke Walton or Ettore Messina, but by waiting so long, they run the risk of letting either or both of those coaches also be hired.
The most important issue continues to be the employment of Byron Scott and the Lakers do not seem to be moving any closer to firing their head coach.
