With the news that Magic Johnson is stepping down as President of Basketball Operations, we take a look at the two drastically different FOs in Los Angeles
In a shocker, Magic Johnson announced his resignation as the PoBO for the Lakers yesterday. There were some interesting quotes in his announcement that really highlighted the difference between the Lakers front office and that of the Clippers. It’s worth thinking about those differences, keeping in context the position each team finds itself in. Keep in mind the fantastic quote from Jeanie Buss that was leaked earlier in the season: “He will have nothing but Clippers basketball. Whoopee.”
The Clippers front office has been one unified front all season long. As fans and media analysts debated whether or not the Clips should tank – of course I never did anything of the sort – the Clippers seemingly never had that debate. Even as Tobias Harris was traded and many of us thought the Clippers made the turn for the lottery, Ballmer and the rest of the organization consistently told us that the playoffs were the goal.
That echos everything Ballmer’s said about tanking – that is, that he has no interest and the team will never tank. That sort of continuity and consistency has been the modus operandi for this Clippers team. Ballmer didn’t take the opportunity to tank, just like he said he wouldn’t. With rumors of interest from the Lakers flying, Coach Doc Rivers publicly told everyone that he’d extended his contract and would be here for a long time.
When stars hit the trade block and many players’ futures were up in the air, the Clippers made it clear that the young guys on our squad aren’t for sale; they even procured more young talent in Landry Shamet. Guys like Shamet and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander are going to form the core of this squad for years to come, and the front office wanted to make sure that there was no question in that.
No matter what, Clippers fans and players can look forward with extreme trust in the front office. They’ve worked as a team and are going to do right by the players, while doing what’s right for the team. That’s not to say nobody can get traded, but there aren’t going to be months of “will they or won’t they?” leading up to it. Despite what Jeanie would say, having Clippers basketball is a lot more than just a consolation prize.
All of that can’t exactly be said about the other Los Angeles team. While they’ve never exactly looked like a unified front office, Magic Johnson interestingly mentioned that he was tired of the “backstabbing and whispering.” For the departing PoBO to mention that publicly could mean that it’s even worse than we thought.
On the coaching front, it’s been assumed that, fair or not, Luke Walton is coaching his last season for the Lakers. Magic said (per NPR):
"“Tomorrow, I would have to effect somebody’s life – ruin their life,” he said. “That’s not fun for me, that’s not who I am.”"
So for those keeping track, that’s the President of Basketball Operations stepping down and, on the way out, complaining about backstabbing in his job and hinting that the coach is gone. Not exactly the most professional and unified of looks, is it?
But again, that’s been par for the course for the Lakers this year. The front office has been fined for tampering, they’ve dangled their entire young core in trade talks for weeks, and they’ve put forward zero signs of professionalism or unity. It seems like their management figured “we’ve got LeBron. The rest will just figure itself out.”
When you contrast that with the Clippers office, you see what an effect great leadership can have on a team. When you combine a professional front office with one of the best owners in the whole league (I’d say the best owner, but I’ll be political), you can lead a team of young guys to the playoffs. Alternatively, when you have none of those things at all – when bickering and nepotism rule in the front office, you take LeBron James and a good young core and miss the playoffs.