NBA - Lakers Fire Frank Vogel After Disastrous Season

The Los Angeles Lakers have fired head coach Frank Vogel after what can only be described as their worst season in decades. The decision comes after weeks of speculation regarding his future.

The Lakers, who announced Vogel’s dismissal late on Monday, are targeting Toronto’s Nick Nurse as a possible replacement. Despite presiding over a hugely disappointing season, Vogel was not an overall failure during his tenure. In three seasons as coach, 48-year-old Vogel helped lead the franchise to the 2020 NBA championship and had a 127-98 record.

The Lakers were Vogel’s third team as head coach. He had previous stints with the Indiana Pacers and Orlando Magic. He has been lauded for being a defensive mastermind and proved that in 2020 with the Lakers. However, someone had to pay the price for such an underwhelming season. He can point to injuries and inconsistencies but the buck stops at his door in the end.

“I have a tremendous amount of respect for Frank both on and off the court,” Lakers general manager and vice president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka said in a release.

“Frank is a great coach and a good man. We will forever be grateful to him for his work guiding us to the 2019-20 NBA championship. This is an incredibly difficult decision to make, but one we feel is necessary at this point.”

Possible Replacements

As far as replacements, the Lakers front office has identified Toronto coach Nick Nurse. Nurse signed a multi-year contract extension in 2020 after leading the Raptors to the championship in 2019. An outstanding achievement considering that was his first season in charge of the Raptors. He was voted the NBA’s Coach of the Year the following season after setting a franchise record with a .736 winning percentage. This season, Toronto finished with a winning record and fifth place in the Eastern Conference.