A week after getting turned down by Kawhi Leonard, the Los Angeles Lakers have missed out on a key addition to their coaching staff as well.
Ron Adams, the Golden State Warriors’ star assistant coach, has turned down an assistant role with the Lakers for a “revised role” in the Bay Area, according to ESPN.
Lakers miss out on Ron Adams, still have Jason Kidd and Lionel Hollins
The Lakers had previously been given permission to talk to Adams, who would have been a home run hire for Frank Vogel’s coaching staff. Currently, the Lakers’ staff includes Vogel, Lionel Hollins and Jason Kidd, the latter of whom is reportedly the top-paid assistant in the NBA.
Between those three, the Lakers have 21 seasons of NBA head coaching experience on board.
Adams would have likely been given the task of constructing the Lakers’ defense had he been hired, as that is what he’s done for Golden State.
A member of Kerr’s original Warriors staff, Adams’ defenses never ranked lower than 11th in the league in defensive rating despite frequently featuring smaller lineups. That work led to Adams being voted the NBA’s top assistant coach four years in a row by the league’s general managers.
Given that Adams is 71 years old, is a native of nearby Fresno County and seems to be in an ideal place for the latter stages of his career, it’s easy to see why he didn’t make a jump to the Lakers, who have garnered a reputation for volatility at every major level of the organization.
Adams staying to coach a very different Warriors team
While Adams is sticking with a familiar setting, he will have a very different team to coach next season.
Kevin Durant is gone. Andre Iguodala is gone. Shaun Livingston is gone. Klay Thompson will likely be out for most of the season. Those four players range from decent to top-tier defenders, and the Warriors’ biggest addition is D’Angelo Russell, who typically does not rate among the league’s stronger defenders.
The team should still have a strong defensive frontcourt with Draymond Green and Kevon Looney back on board, but it will be interesting to see what Kerr and Adams do to help Stephen Curry and Russell against some of the Western Conference’s most dangerous guards.
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