Despite getting a vote of confidence from the organization, it seems that Mike D’Antoni’s tenure in L.A. could be coming to an end.
Stephen A. Smith is reporting that D’Antoni will indeed be fired at the end of this dreadful Lakers season.
“I had a source tell me last night [that] Mike D’Antoni is gone at the end of the season. He won’t be there,” Smith said on Monday’s edition of ESPN’s First Take. “I’m just telling you, that’s the word coming out of L.A. It’s not coming from the Lakers themselves, but people close to the organization say that Mike D’Antoni is gone because there’s no way that [Carmelo Anthony] would elect to go there if D’Antoni is there. If D’Antoni is gone, with the cap room they have coming up and Kobe’s imminent return, [L.A.] is a viable option [for Anthony].”
I think it’s more about D’Antoni not being the right fit, and less to do with Carmelo.
New head coach or not, there’s no guarantee the Lakers get Melo.