Kurt Rambis turned down the Kings' head coaching job in June because it didn't pay enough (approximately $1.5 million per year) or provide adequate job security (only two years guaranteed). So now he accepts a Minnesota Timberwolves position that pays more - $2 million per season - and offers better benefits (four years). The major downside for the longtime Lakers assistant, of course, will be the longer flight from his beloved Manhattan Beach home.
Given Phil Jackson's tenuous health, why wouldn't Rambis just wait until Jackson retires - assuming that, as the lead assistant, he would be the heir apparent? Assume nothing, as they say. When I spoke with Rambis' agent, Warren LeGarie, a few weeks ago at the Las Vegas Summer League, LeGarie insisted that his client had no clue what Lakers owner Jerry Buss was planning post-Jackson. More ominously, LeGarie said Buss has never gave Rambis any indication - never mind assurances - that he was the likely successor.
Rambis apparently just got tired of the wait. He hasn't been a head coach since succeeding Del Harris and guiding the Lakers to a 24-13 record during the lockout-shortened 1999 season.
About Comments
Reader comments on Sacbee.com are the opinions of the writer, not The Sacramento Bee. If you see an objectionable comment, click the "report abuse" button below it. We will delete comments containing inappropriate links, obscenities, hate speech, and personal attacks. Flagrant or repeat violators will be banned. See more about comments here.