Since the death of his father Dr. Jerry Buss in 2013, Jim Buss has overseen the Los Angeles Lakers as Executive VP of Basketball Operations and part-owner (with his sister Jeanie, primarily). In that time, the Lakers have gone through a period of almost unprecedented losing. Injuries have played their part, as well as failed trades and free agent acquisitions. Now, Buss has finally come to terms with the Lakers rebuilding, as he told Sam Amick in a lengthy feature and an extra Q&A.
Buss is trying to build a foundation with a self-imposed deadline of Finals contention by 2017. For now, though, he knows where his priorities are:
“(Jerry Buss) taught me for all these years, we’re always looking three to five years ahead. Right now, I’m not looking at this season…I don’t care about making the playoffs and getting eliminated in the playoffs. What I care about is getting the core players, because we want to get to the top, and the only way we can get to the top is to have the core players, get the free agents, have flexibility in our (salary) cap, and we’ll be there within three years. Not a problem. Boom.”
It all sounds so simple when you put it that way but, as the saying goes, “the best laid plans of mice and men,” and so on. The basketball world will watch and wait to see how good D’Angelo Russell and Julius Randle can be. Buss addressed one of the last big moves the Lakers tried to make – the vetoed deal for Chris Paul – and it’s worth a read in the Q&A, if only to see a man work incredibly hard (and fail) to not sound bitter.
He also says that the Lakers “got screwed” by the most recent collective bargaining agreement, presumably because it mitigated a lot of the advantages of the Lakers’ financial superiority over the rest of the league. See? Totally not bitter.
Perhaps the funniest moment of the interview, though, was Buss’ statement on his relationship with former Lakers GM Jerry West, especially after West said the Warriors have better fans: “I’m just happy [for him]. We’ve got his son (director of player personnel Ryan West). We’ve got his son, so we’re fine.”
YOU HEAR THAT, JERRY? WE’VE GOT YOUR SON. AND IF YOU EVER WANT TO SEE HIM AGAIN, YOU’LL TRADE US STEPH CURRY FOR NICK YOUNG AND LOU WILLIAMS.
(Via USA Today)
