Luke Walton named Los Angeles Lakers head coach
Apr 29, 2016, 7:27 PM
In this Nov. 27, 2015, file photo, Golden State Warriors interim head coach Luke Walton smiles in the first quarter during an NBA basketball game against the Phoenix Suns, in Phoenix. Walton has the Warriors off to record start even if he doesn't get official credit for it. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri, File)
(AP Photo/Rick Scuteri, File)
Golden State Warriors assistant and former Arizona Wildcat star Luke Walton was named the next head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night.
“We’re excited to bring Luke back to Los Angeles, where we feel he’s going to start an outstanding coaching career,” Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak said in a team statement. “He’s one of the brightest young coaching minds in the game and we feel fortunate that he’ll be leading the on-court future of our team.”
An assistant under current Warriors coach Steve Kerr, the former Phoenix Suns general manager and also an Arizona player, Walton went 39-4 as Golden State’s interim coach when Kerr was recovering from a back injury to begin the team’s historic 73-win season.
The 36-year-old Walton will remain on the Warriors’ coaching staff until the season ends.
Walton played 10 years in the NBA for the Lakers and Cleveland Cavaliers. He won titles in Los Angeles in 2009 and 2010.
