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Report: Lakers interview Stotts, Mark Jackson for head coaching gig

Andrew D. Bernstein / National Basketball Association / Getty

The Los Angeles Lakers interviewed former Portland Trail Blazers bench boss Terry Stotts in their search for a new head coach, sources told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

Los Angeles also spoke with former Golden State Warriors head coach Mark Jackson, sources told The Athletic's Shams Charania.

Stotts was with Portland until June 2021, when he and the team mutually agreed to part ways after the Trail Blazers were eliminated by the Denver Nuggets in the first round. It was the second consecutive opening-round elimination for Portland and its fourth in the last five seasons.

Jackson was last an NBA head coach in 2014 with the Warriors. He has since worked as a broadcast commentator on ESPN. Lakers star LeBron James was reportedly intrigued in April by the idea of hiring Jackson as his team's next head coach.

Stotts and Jackson are reportedly among eight-to-10 head coach candidates expected to be interviewed by the Lakers, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN. Interviews are reportedly being conducted by several members of the franchise's brain trust, including Jeanie Buss, Rob Pelinka, Kurt Rambis, Jesse Buss, and Joey Buss.

Though the Blazers never made the NBA Finals under Stotts, the 64-year-old led the franchise to the Western Conference finals in 2019, where they were swept by the Warriors. He also took Portland to Round 2 on three occasions amid a stretch of eight straight trips to the playoffs.

A combined 517-486 in his coaching career, Stotts also had a pair of two-season stints with the Milwaukee Bucks and Atlanta Hawks before taking over as Portland's head coach in 2012.

Jackson's head coaching career spans just three seasons with Golden State from 2011-14, going 121-109 overall and taking the squad to the playoffs twice. He's reportedly a finalist in the Sacramento Kings' coaching search.

Los Angeles is conducting a broad search to fill its vacancy, which opened on April 11 when the team fired Frank Vogel after a 33-49 record this season. The club also reportedly plans to interview Adrian Griffin and Darvin Ham, assistant coaches with the Toronto Raptors and Bucks, respectively.

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