Photo: Harry how
The Los Angeles Lakers are reportedly targeting Toronto Raptors head coach Nick Nurse to fill their expected upcoming head coaching vacancy.
The Athletic's Shams Charania reports the Lakers are expected to fire head coach Frank Vogel and "multiple sources say" Nurse -- a recent NBA champion -- is "among the franchise's top targets for the position."
Nurse led the Raptors to their first NBA championship in franchise history in 2019 and signed a multi-year extension in 2020, which has two years remaining.
Charania reports the Lakers would likely need permission from the Raptors to acquire Nurse and "engage them on a prospective trade."
Additionally, Charania reports several other candidates are expected to be linked to Los Angeles coaching job in the "next several weeks" including University of Michigan coach Juwan Howard, who had previously interviewed for the position in 2019 and has ties to Lakers all-star forward LeBron James during their shared time with the Miami Heat.
On Sunday (April 10), ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported Vogel was expected to be fired by the Lakers.
"Frank Vogel has coached his final game for the Lakers, a decision that’s expected to be shared with him as soon as Monday, sources tell ESPN," Wojnarowski tweeted. "Lakers’ search expected to be lengthy and expansive with no clear initial frontrunner."
Vogel, 48, was hired as the Lakers' head coach in May 2019 and led the franchise to its 17th NBA championship during his first season -- which tied the Boston Celtics for the most world championships in league history -- during the 2020 NBA Bubble postseason in the isolation zone at Walt Disney World, which followed a COVID-shortened season.
Vogel went 126-98 during three seasons in Los Angeles but had a worse record during each season following the Lakers' championship season in 2019-20.
Los Angeles finished the 2020-21 season with a 42-30 record, ranking seventh in the Western Conference and getting eliminated in the first round of the NBA Playoffs.
The Lakers missed the postseason entirely in 2021-22, finishing the regular season with a 32-49 record and ranking 11th in the Western Conference.
Vogel owns a career head coaching record of 398-340, having previously served as the Indiana Pacers' head coach from 2011-16 -- making the playoffs five times in six seasons -- and the Orlando Magic's head coach from 2016-18.
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