Nobody's Supposed To Be Here by Katie Heindl Championship teams come apart. Kevin Love and the Cavs both went on grasping at the pieces that were better off burning up in a return to the atmospheric realities of a league that, healthy or not, never stops. It's Always Better To Try by Colin McGowan The Knicks are exploring the outer limits of what a not-great team can do when they play really hard every night. That counts for a lot, especially in a sleepy pandemic season. The Memeification Of Paul George by Rafael Canton It's not so much that Paul George has lost in the playoffs, but it's also the way that he's lost. There's still time for George to change his story.<doc-sep>The Lakers are moving fast to try to fill their head-coaching vacancy, interviewing former Orlando Magic and Indiana Pacers coach Frank Vogel on Thursday, according to people not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. In an event-filled Wednesday during which negotiations between the Lakers and former Cleveland Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue reached an impasse, the Lakers quickly targeted Vogel as a candidate, and he had a meeting at the team’s practice facility in El Segundo. After missing the playoffs for the last six consecutive seasons, the Lakers are hoping to land a coach — their fifth in the last eight seasons — who can take the franchise back to the postseason. Vogel, 45, had his best moments as coach of the Pacers for five-plus seasons, leading them to the playoffs five out of the six seasons he was there, including a postseason berth when he took over as the interim coach in 2011. Advertisement If past interviews with candidates are an indicator, Vogel probably met with Lakers owner Jeanie Buss, general manager Rob Pelinka, co-owners Joey Buss (who runs the Lakers’ G League South Bay Lakers team) and Jesse Buss (the Lakers’ assistant general manager and director of scouting), chief operating officer Tim Harris, director of special projects Linda Rambis and senior advisor Kurt Rambis. Vogel’s teams are known for their strong play on defense, having ranked in the top five in the league during his tenure with the Pacers. Under Vogel’s guidance, Indiana advanced to the Eastern Conference finals in 2013 and 2014 before losing to the LeBron James-led Miami Heat. Vogel spent two seasons with the Magic before being fired after the 2018 season. He has worked for the Lakers before as an advance scout from 2005-06. Vogel had been a candidate to be the associate head coach on Lue’s staff. The New Jersey native, who transferred to Kentucky after starting for two seasons at Division III Juanita College, has a record of 304-291 in seven-plus seasons as an NBA coach. Vogel’s coaching career began in 2001 when he joined the Boston Celtics’ staff as an assistant under coach Jim O’Brien. After three seasons with the Celtics, Vogel followed O’Brien to the Philadelphia 76ers for one season and then to the Pacers in 2007. The Lakers’ coaching position has been open since April 12, when the Lakers and Luke Walton mutually agreed to part ways. Walton was hired as coach of the Sacramento Kings a few days later. Advertisement Other candidates the Lakers are considering include former Atlanta Hawks and New York Knicks coach Mike Woodson and former Memphis Grizzlies and Brooklyn Nets coach Lionel Hollins. The team also will continue to consider Miami Heat assistant Juwan Howard and former Brooklyn Nets and Milwaukee Bucks coach Jason Kidd, both of whom were interviewed in April. Sign up for our Lakers newsletter » Lue and former New Orleans Pelicans coach Monty Williams were the front-runners for the job. After two rounds of interviews in late April, neither was offered a contract. Williams agreed to become coach of the Phoenix Suns on May 3. The Lakers opened negotiations with Lue on Friday. The Lakers and the former Cavaliers coach, who went to three consecutive NBA Finals with James and brought Cleveland its first pro sports championship in 50 years in 2016, reached an impasse Wednesday over the the contract offer, which was three years and $18 million.<doc-sep>LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Lakers are trying to quickly rebound in their head coaching search after failing to land Tyronn Lue. A person familiar with the search said former Indiana and Orlando coach Frank Vogel will be interviewed for the opening. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Thursday because the person wasn’t at liberty to publicly discuss negotiations. Vogel flew to Los Angeles on Thursday. The 45-year old Vogel has worked for the organization before as an advance scout during the 2005-06 season. He did not coach last season following two years with the Orlando Magic. Vogel went to Orlando following five-plus seasons leading the Pacers, including two trips to the Eastern Conference finals in 2013 and ’14. The Pacers lost both years to LeBron James and the Miami Heat. Vogel is the fifth candidate known to have interviewed for the opening since the Lakers dismissed Luke Walton on April 12. Los Angeles was thought to be on the verge of hiring Lue this week before talks broke down. They have also considered Monty Williams, who was hired by the Phoenix Suns, Juwan Howard and Jason Kidd. Besides interviewing with owner Jeanie Buss and general manager Rob Pelinka, Vogel is expected to meet with co-owners Jesse Buss (director of scouting) and Joey Buss (president of the Lakers’ G-League team) as well as senior adviser Kurt Rambis, chief operating officer Tim Harris and director of special projects Linda Rambis. The Lakers have missed the playoffs six straight seasons. The playoff drought was expected to end this season but injuries to James, Lonzo Ball and Brandon Ingram, as well as internal discord, resulted in a 37-45 record. Magic Johnson resigned as president of basketball operations prior to the final regular-season game on April 9. The Los Angeles Times was the first to report the Lakers’ plans to interview Vogel.<doc-sep>The Los Angeles Lakers saw talks with Tyronn Lue go south on Wednesday, and will now interview Frank Vogel for their head coaching job at their practice facility in El Segundo on Thursday, according to Broderick Turner of The L.A. Times. Vogel is just one of a few names the Lakers will target as part of their second head coaching search, with Lionel Hollins, Mike Woodson, Jason Kidd and Juwan Howard also expected to be considered. Only Kidd and Howard have interviewed previously. As recently as Monday, Vogel — a former advance scout for the Lakers — was widely considered the favorite to get the lead assistant position under Lue, but it seems now that the team’s negotiations with Lue have flamed out, Vogel will actually be a candidate for the main job. Our own Christian Rivas rounded up Vogel’s resume well in his story on Vogel being a potential lead assistant from back when that development was first reported: Vogel was fired by the Magic last year after going 54-110 in the two seasons he served as their head coach. However, before Vogel’s brief, disappointing stint in Orlando, he was one of the most successful head coaches in the Eastern Conference with the Indiana Pacers. During his six seasons in Indiana, Vogel finished with a winning record of 250-181 and never finished lower than fourth place in the standings. He also had a decent amount of playoff success, leading Paul George and the Pacers to the Eastern Conference Finals twice only to lose to LeBron James and the Miami Heat. A large part of his sustained success had to do with his defensive mind. In two of the six seasons Vogel was in Indiana, the Pacers had the best defense in the league. They never finished lower than 12th in defensive efficiency during his tenure, according to NBA.com. Vogel would clearly be a decent candidate for the gig given his success in Indiana, but his failure in Orlando with largely the same roster that Steve Clifford led to a playoff spot this year is enough to give reason for pause. Still, all the candidates in this new search have flaws, so we’ll just have to see who the Lakers ultimately decide is best for them, even if it’s not immediately clear that this group is qualified to make such a call. For more Lakers talk, subscribe to the Silver Screen and Roll podcast feed on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher or Google Podcasts. You can follow Harrison on Twitter at @hmfaigen.<doc-sep>
Richard Jefferson and Stephen Jackson aren't confident that Frank Vogel would be the best fit to coach LeBron James and the Lakers. (1:03) The Los Angeles Lakers have regrouped from Wednesday's breakdown with head-coaching candidate Tyronn Lue and plan to interview Frank Vogel for the position, ESPN confirmed. Vogel was flying to Los Angeles on Thursday for the interview, league sources told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. Vogel, 45, last coached for the Orlando Magic, going 25-57 in 2017-18 before being fired. In eight seasons with the Indiana Pacers and Orlando, his teams went 304-291 (.511) in the regular season and 31-30 (.508) in the playoffs. The Pacers reached the conference finals under his watch in 2013 and 2014, falling both times to LeBron James and the Miami Heat. Known for his defensive expertise, Vogel was discussed as a candidate to join Lue's staff had Lue taken the Lakers job, league sources told ESPN. Vogel will become the fifth candidate to interview for the vacancy created by Luke Walton's departure last month, joining Monty Williams, Juwan Howard, Jason Kidd and Lue. The Phoenix Suns hired Williams as their head coach. The Lakers' interview process is expected to include controlling owner Jeanie Buss, general manager Rob Pelinka, team adviser Kurt Rambis, director of special projects Linda Rambis and chief operating officer Tim Harris, as well as Lakers co-owners Joey Buss (president of the organization's G League affiliate) and Jesse Buss (the Lakers' director of scouting). Vogel worked as a scout for the Lakers during the 2005-06 season. He was a student manager at the University of Kentucky under Rick Pitino. The Los Angeles Times first reported the Lakers' scheduled interview with Vogel.