The Los Angeles Lakers made a lot of changes to the lineup in the offseason. Three new starters will be on the floor this year. Rob Pelinka was the man who made all of these decisions, including a massive sign-and-trade for Walker Kessler.
However, he did most of those moves while the team was still owned by Mark Walter. After a surprise sale of the franchise, Pelinka will now have a new boss for the second time in 14 months. That has led one prominent analyst to predict that he will lose his job.
Bill Simmons Predicts Lakers Will Fire Rob Pelinka This Season
While talking on the Bill Simmons Podcast, Bill Simmons believes that Pelinka will not keep his job for long. He predicts that Pelinka will be shown the door at some point this year.
“Rob Pelinka, he’s not in the crockpot. I don’t even think he’s on a hot seat. I think he’s in the exit row, and I don’t know when that’s going to happen. But I don’t think he will be involved with this team by the end of the season, if not sooner.”
Pelinka is the executive who was able to pull off the Luka Doncic trade, which is seen by many as the most surprising trade in NBA history. Despite that, the Lakers have no title to show for it. Doncic has struggled to stay healthy in the postseason, as well.
The Lakers have no assets to make any more big moves. After the Kessler trade, they can only make minimal moves around the fringes at the trade deadline. The core of Doncic, Kessler, and Austin Reaves will be the core for the foreseeable future. Simmons thinks that costs Pelinka his job.
Bob Iger and Josh Kushner will make that decision soon. The new owners will likely want to bring in their own guys to help run the team. Pelinka will now have worked under three different ownership groups, and no higher-up has any loyalty to him at this point.
Rob Pelinka is Out of Shields to Keep His Job
As long as Jeanie Buss was the governor of the team, Pelinka had a shot to keep his job. She was the one who hired him in the first place. However, this sale with Iger and Kushner means that Buss has been pushed out, and she likely won’t be the governor moving forward.
That leaves Pelinka with no one left to go to bat for him, even if these moves work out. It seems that the only thing that could keep Pelinka in LA is if the Lakers win the title. At that point, it would be almost impossible to fire him, based on the moves he’s made.
Last season, LA ranked 10th in offense in the NBA. They have a shot to get into the top five if Doncic can stay healthy all season long. That might be their only hope if they are going to compete for a title.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
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