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After an offseason that brought Steve Nash and Dwight Howard to Los Angeles to team up with Pau Gasol and Kobe Bryant, a 1-4 start was unacceptable and it wasn’t going to fly for a team with championship aspirations. Mike Brown learned that the hard way when the Lakers fired him last week. Maybe he wasn’t given enough time and maybe it was a panic move by a team starving for title number 18 but it was the right move and there was no point of waiting when the coaching options available were better for Los Angeles. It wasn’t all Brown’s fault. Dwight Howard isn’t 100 percent this season, Steve Nash went down with an injury and there were a lot of new players on the roster trying to learn how to play with each other but it was never going to get better with Brown in Los Angeles.
He was miscast in the first place and one of the most talented teams in the NBA looked completely discombobulated on offense and the defense, Brown’s specialty, wasn’t very good either. So perhaps it was a panic move by the Lakers but it was a necessary move if they want to live up to their own lofty expectations. Metta World Peace joined Fox Sports Radio with the Loose Cannons to talk about whether he was surprised to learn of Mike Brown getting fired, how much of the Lakers problems were Mike Brown related, what kind of head coach he would like next, what he makes of the glare that Kobe Bryant was seen giving to Mike Brown, how much he thinks coaches matter in the NBA and if he thinks there is still enough time to turn things around this season. (Editor’s Note: This interview took place before the Mike D’Antoni hiring.)
Whether he was surprised to learn of Mike Brown getting fired:
“I think in the history of basketball people get hired and people get fired but the main thing is people enjoy their careers and enjoy that they have jobs so you really have to stay positive about everything.”
How much of the Lakers problems were related to Mike Brown:
“I’m not sure. I can’t answer that but what I can say is that Mike Brown has a great career. He’s young, he’s energized and the Lakers obviously have a great future and still the best organization in the world so there’s a lot of positives involved with everybody.”
Whether he was happy with the defensive scheme under Mike Brown:
“I’m always excited about life in general. No matter what happens I’m always out there trying to find ways and solutions, no excuses. For me it’s all about enjoying life, staying positive and always trying to find a solution.”
What kind of head coach he would like next:
“That’s a question for the Lakers because they have 17 championships so they know what we need to win. We just go out there, execute and make sure we get the victories.”
What he makes of the glare that Kobe Bryant gave to Mike Brown:
“Kobe is amazing. He’s extremely competitive. Even in wins when Kobe had 40 points or 50 points, he will still have that stare. Kobe is extremely competitive and he hates losing so I doubt it had anything to do with Coach Brown.”
How much he thinks coaches matter:
“I think coaches really do matter because they see the game and we just play the game from a different point of view so they’re able to give us a lot of tips and a lot of pointers and I think coaches are really, really important.”
On the frustration of Lakers fans:
“Laker fans live and die with Laker basketball and that’s why we get paid. We get paid to kind of support their emotions. We get paid to produce. All the Lakers fans want is wins so we have to understand where they are coming from but for me as a player I don’t really have time to have emotions involved.”
If he thinks there is still time to turn things around this season:
“I think so. I think this year is going to be a great year. Actually I believe and know 100 percent this year is going to be a victory for us, coming out number one.”
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