Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant reportedly wants Chicago Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau to replace Mike D'Antoni as the next Lakers coach. Bryant's "wish list" for his next coach includes Thibodeau, ESPN analyst Jeff Van Gundy and Euro coach Ettore Messina, according to Yahoo Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski.
D'Antoni resigned from the Lakers Wednesday night when the team declined to pick up the 2015-16 option in his contract. The coaching vacancy is likely a pleasant surprise for Bryant, who reportedly didn't want to play for D'Antoni next season.
Although general manager Mitch Kupchak has said Bryant won't have input in hiring the next coach, Yahoo Sports reports Bryant nonetheless has preferences for who takes over next season.
"Bryant will wish for Tom Thibodeau to free himself from Chicago," Wojnarowski wrote on Wednesday. "He loves Jeff Van Gundy, and shares management's affinity for Euro legend Ettore Messina, who spent a season on Mike Brown's staff.
"Bryant has long admired Byron Scott, but there's a different ex-Lakers guard who could go much further to regenerate the franchise's culture and hold the insight into getting the most out of Bryant's final two seasons: Derek Fisher. ...
"As for the Lakers' coaching job, it holds tremendous appeal to (Fisher), sources with knowledge of his thinking told Yahoo Sports on Wednesday night."
ESPN also reported Fisher as a potential candidate for the Lakers' coaching job.
The Lakers are expected to take their time choosing a new coach.
"The Los Angeles Lakers plan a drawn-out and exhaustive search to replace coach Mike D'Antoni, but sources close to the process insist that they hope to 'make a splash' with their eventual hire," ESPN's Marc Stein and Ramona Shelburne wrote on Thursday.
Other candidates who reportedly interest the Lakers include Kentucky's John Calipari, Connecticut's Kevin Ollie, Lakers assistant Kurt Rambis and Mike Dunleavy.
