Los Angeles: The Los Angeles Lakers appointed former player Byron Scott as their new head coach on Monday, bringing an end to their “extensive and thorough” search for Mike D’Antoni’s replacement.
Scott, 53, was a three-time NBA champion with the Lakers during their triumphant ‘Showtime’ era in the 1980s and has worked as a head coach in the league for 13 years, most recently with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
He was fired by the Cavaliers on April 18 last year after compiling a record of 64-166 during his three seasons in charge, and has since worked as an analyst for the Lakers’ television broadcast partner, TWC SportsNet.
“After an extensive and thorough search, we’re proud to welcome Byron back to the Lakers family as our next head coach,” Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak said in a statement.
“Byron has proven himself at the highest levels of the game as both a player and a coach in his almost 30 years of NBA experience. His leadership skills and track record for success make him the ideal person to lead this franchise forward.”
Scott, the NBA’s coach of the year in 2008 after his first winning season as head coach of the New Orleans Hornets, has been signed by the Lakers to a multi-year contract, though no financial details were revealed by the team.
“I am ecstatic to once again be a Laker and to have the opportunity to work alongside Mitch and the Buss family,” said Scott.
“I know firsthand what it takes to bring a championship to this city and, as someone who both grew up in LA and played the majority of my career here, I know how passionate and dedicated our fans are.
“I will give everything I have to fulfil the championship expectations that our supporters have for us, and that we have for ourselves.”
Scott had been given a ringing endorsement by the Lakers’ Kobe Bryant, a five-time NBA champion.
The pair played together in Los Angeles during the 1996-97 season, when Bryant made his debut in the league, and he described Scott as a “rookie mentor” who made him fetch donuts and run various other errands.
“We’ve had a tremendously close relationship over the years,” Bryant told reporters earlier this month. “Obviously I know him extremely well, he knows me extremely well and I’ve always been a fan of his.”
