Former Arizona Wildcat and current head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, Luke Walton, could possibly be heading to UCLA as their next head coach.
What a crazy year it has been already for Arizona Wildcat basketball! And it’s got even crazier with the latest rumors that former Arizona Wildcat and now current coach for the Los Angeles Lakers, Luke Walton, could possibly be the next head coach for the UCLA Bruins. Crazy, right!?! Imagine Walton coaching against the Arizona Wildcats. Even crazier, imagine Bill calling a Pac-12 game with his son as a Pac-12 coach. Wow!
These latest rumors, according to senior writer for Bleacher Report Ric Bucher, indicate that possibility of Walton heading to UCLA would involve Bill Walton pulling some strings. Now why would Bill do that you ask? Well maybe because he played at UCLA and would like to see his son continue the UCLA tradition. Or who knows what Bill is thinking?? Plus, with previous coach Steve Alford being fired during this season, their is now a vacancy for the heading coaching position.
Currently the Los Angeles Lakers are 30-34 and sit at No.10 in the Western Conference and are (so many games back) of the No.8 seed San Antonio Spurs. Expectations were high this season as The King, Lebron James, became a Laker before the start of the season. Injuries, inexperience and inconsistency has hurt this team of late and are on the brink of not making the playoffs. In the NBA unfortunately if a team under performs, the scapegoat is usually the coach, this case being Walton.
From a name standpoint, it would attract Bruins fans to come watch, but in the big picture there are three reasons why he wouldn’t be a good fit:
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- Personality. His personality wouldn’t fit the college basketball game at all. In the NBA, you can get away with being hands off. Meaning, when coaching NBA superstars they really don’t need to be told how to play offense or defense. Walton has a very laid back personality, eventhough sometimes he may come across the opposite, and the that type of approach won’t work on the college level. In college basketball, it requires hands on 24/7.
- Pressure. Yes, Walton is currently an NBA coach and has to deal with pressure all the time. At the college level and especially at UCLA, he wouldn’t deal with the same amount, but it would be there. It’s UCLA, it’s a powerhouse program and people expect to win there. It would be a better transition for Walton if he were to get some experience at a mid-major school and then work his way to a program like UCLA, in order to better handle the immense pressure he would deal with.
- Expectations. Being a head coach, no matter what level, comes with expectations. With the winning tradition UCLA has had, Walton would be expected to come in and start winning right away. That’s unrealistic. In today’s landscape of college basketball and players staying maybe one or two years, it would take Walton a few seasons at least to recruit the players he wanted.
Coach Walton is trying to stay as positive as he can with everything that is happening. That has to be respected. In his teams recent loss to the Los Angeles Clippers, 105-113, it was apparent that he is emotionally exhausted and maybe ready for a change in scenery??
https://twitter.com/Lakers/status/1102822682851065856
Stayed tuned to the latest news with Luke Walton right here at Zona Zealots. Whether the next chapter in Walton’s basketball coaching career is with the Lakers, UCLA or somewhere else, we wish him nothing but the best. Bear Down, Arizona!