Letters: What will Mike Brown do for Lakers?

Mike Brown is the single worst non-interim head coaching hire in Lakers history (Yes, I am aware of Randy Pfund). The Lakers will not only not win an NBA title under Brown, they will be lucky to make the conference finals. As we have seen for some time now with the Knicks, when rich dads let their incompetent sons run the team nothing good comes of it, and that will most definitely be the case here.

Hello, lottery — get ready for the Lakers.

Erik Schuman

Fountain Valley

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I get the feeling this is the end of the Lakers era in Los Angeles.

No more Jack Nicholson at courtside. No more 18,997 at every game; more like 12,000. Certainly no more championships.

The great owner, Jerry Buss, has unaccountably turned this civic institution over to his son Jim Buss, who essentially has no experience in basketball, either as a player, coach or administrator.

It would take a person of extraordinary self assurance to pull this off, and I suspect Jim is not that person.

Al Sheahen

Sherman Oaks

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Mike Brown preaches defense, which is all about effort and desire. Anyone notice a lack of those from the Lakers in the series against the Mavericks?

Bruce Kahn

Claremont

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Jim Buss says he hired Brown because of his expertise on defense. Does that mean the Lakers will be obtaining a quick, skillful point guard to defend the perimeter, an element that gave them so much trouble last season? If not, Brown might be the Einstein of NBA defense, but it won’t matter.

Thomas Bailey

Long Beach

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Bill Plaschke moans about the Lakers’ hiring of Mike Brown despite Brown’s success as an assistant with the championship Spurs, and his ability to squeeze out the most out of a very limited Cavaliers team. The declining Kobe Bryant and the almost totally ineffective Derek Fisher guarantee that the Lakers will be worse next year. Thus, Plaschke will have his “I told you so” moment. Is that fair to Mike Brown?

Jim Woodard

Woodland Hills

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I was worried about the Mike Brown hire until Bill “I worship at the feet of Jeff Van Gundy” Plaschke came out against it. Now I think it’s great. Plaschke’s track record of being wrong practically all of the time guarantees the Lakers the next NBA championship.

Mitch Engel

Los Angeles

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Was the rapid hiring of Mike Brown Jim Buss’ way of asserting himself as the head honcho? Or is Brown the only guy they could find who, like Eric Spoelstra, would merely act like he is coaching the team?

Bud Chapman

Northridge

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Sorry, Mark Heisler, but the Laker problem is not Silver Spoon Jim Buss. It’s his sister’s “boy toy”, Phil Jackson, the most overrated coach in the history of sports. His ability to motivate players is nonexistent and if not for self-motivating players like Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, he would have as many rings as his doomed-for-failure successor, Mike Brown.

When the Heat crushed the Lakers on Christmas Day, the Zen master said it was because his players don’t like to play on Christmas. This is classic Jackson-speak for “I have rings and money and frankly don’t really care.” I can’t wait to see whom he blames for the debacle against the Mavericks in his new book.

Gary Miller

Encino

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Bill Plaschke recently wrote the following about the Lakers hiring Mike Brown as their next coach: “If the Lakers hire Brown as their next coach, it’s a sign that the Buss family once again seems intent on conducting a coaching search as if they are smarter than everyone else.”

They’ve won 10 NBA championships beginning in 1980. They are smarter than everyone else.

Jim Gillespie

Temecula

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I’m curious who in the Lakers’ brain trust made the ultimate decision selecting Mike Brown.

1. Jerry Buss

2. Jim Buss

3. Jeanie Buss

4. Ralph Kramden

Howard Mationg

Gardena

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Brian Shaw will come to realize how fortunate that he did not get the Lakers’ coaching job. Ask anyone who followed John Wooden how hard it is to follow a legend, especially when you inherit an aging team. Jim Buss actually did Shaw a favor.

Sol Bialeck

Van Nuys

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If the praising of LeBron and the Heat doesn’t light a fire under the Lakers next season, they’re not the team I’ve loved all these years.

Joan Sales

San Luis Obispo

Fighting on

It’s a shame the NCAA has seen fit to continue to punish USC, when in fact the guilty parties here are the agents and “marketing” people who induced Reggie Bush and family to violate their contract with the university, as well as Reggie himself. The university, the current members of the football team and coaching staff, as well as all of us fans, are the ones who are being punished. There is no justice here. How will the NCAA treat Auburn and Ohio State, who also have had similar and serious recent violations?

Bruce M. Jaffe

Los Altos

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So the players that cheated the system are gone, the athletic director is gone, the school president has retired, the head football and basketball coaches are both gone, the assistant coach that knew of the football scandal is gone. How is it fair to the current athletic director, current football coach, all the student athletes, and the fans to implement such severe penalties? How does that prevent abuse of the system?

The NCAA has once again shown it is run by a bunch of bozos (no offense to Bozo the Clown, who apparently could have run the NCAA infractions appeals committee better).

Brian K. Haueter

Ventura

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Sorry, ‘SC, but you got what your arrogant fans and former athletic director asked for. Had the athletic department shown a little remorse from the outset, the penalties wouldn’t have been so harsh. But instead, you took the “God is a Trojan” approach, claiming that everyone else is jealous they’re not Trojans. Well, the NCAA correctly didn’t take too kindly to that holier-than-thou attitude. You can thank your lucky stars that they didn’t also take away your television appearances.

Jim Bendat

Los Angeles

No dodging it

Most pundits felt Don Mattingly needed a year or two managing a minor league team. Well, he’s getting it!

Joel Rapp

Los Angeles

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As a lifelong Dodgers fan, I am amazed to see a half-empty stadium every time I turn on the TV.

As a Clippers season-ticket holder, I am amazed that the team sold out so many of its late-season games, even after it had been eliminated from the postseason (thank you, Blake Griffin). Now, I am told that my entire section in Staples Center is sold out for next season.

I never thought the day would come when a Clippers ticket is more sought after than a Dodgers ticket.

Lee Barnathan

Chatsworth

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Mr. McCourt, Just a little reminder about running a major league franchise: You’re supposed to make the playoffs in October. Not layoffs in June.

Paul Feinsinger

Agoura Hills

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Thanks for the inferior team this year, Frank. And also thank you for finally being exposed as the money-grubbing carpetbagger we all knew you were. Unfortunately, the real Dodger fans will have to live with what you have done forever. “A steward for the team,” you promised. I guess you mumbled the word “poor” before steward, as I didn’t hear that part.

Now the lawsuit hits from the Stows, due to your complete incompetence in doing the most basic of job duties, looking out for the fans that come to the game.

Good riddance, we don’t want you here.

Steve Owen

San Diego

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Why would you publish a factually incorrect letter from David Saw [May 21]? He says that the beefed-up security force at Dodger Stadium leaves after the seventh inning. That’s baloney. I attended games against the Cubs on May 1 and the Brewers on May 17, and can assure you that there were LAPD officers blanketing the parking lots and inside and outside the stadium before, during and AFTER the games, with police in cars and on motorcycles — lights flashing — throughout the parking lots.

Bob Bayer

West Hills

The other guys

So Mike Scioscia thinks that signing the aging Russell Branyan, thereby having to play slow Bobby Abreu in the outfield, will end his team’s hitting woes? That maybe youngsters Peter Bourjos and Mark Trumbo won’t come through?

Here’s a little message to you, Skip: It’s your hitting coach. His “aggressive, first-pitch swinging” has already damaged the kids.

Patience at the plate seems to work for the Yankees and the Red Sox, but Scioscia can’t seem to figure out that his team’s inability to work the count and hit in the clutch is directly linked to Mickey Hatcher and his bunch of hackers.

Oh, and by the way: Jeff Mathis couldn’t hit when you ran Bengie Molina and Mike Napoli out of town, and he can’t hit now. Play Conger.

Gary Grayson

Ventura

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T.J. Simers’ critical but insightful Angels critique features, as usual, his use of the word “I” — 17 times — befitting his own extensive record of genius sports coaching experience. The Angels, he uniquely declares, are a pitifully, stumbling half-game removed from first place. Imagine where they’d be if Coach Simers was heroically leading an inspired Halo team.

John Holmstrom

Los Angeles

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The Kendrys Morales bobblehead I picked up at Angel Stadium this week has its head turned at an awkward 90-degree right angle seemingly not looking where’s he’s going as he takes a swing. Considering his devastating freak injury of a year ago, this seems oddly and sadly appropriate.

Ditto for the fact that I have since placed it on a shelf.

Ron Reeve

Glendora

Dopes

Going to watch the final stage of the Amgen Tour of California race in Thousand Oaks on Sunday, our group of cyclists and Times readers concurred on this prediction: that Diane Pucin could not write about the finishing stage without referencing the doping claims being made against Lance Armstrong. Sure enough, her Monday story was titled “Allegations overshadow Tour finale.”

Not from where we stood: The thousands cheering Chris Horner’s success enjoyed a beautiful day and race. We’re up to date on the accusations, but they do not define the sport of cycling.

Gary Keene

Altadena

Out of step?

In its quest to become the L.A. Dodgers of print journalism, The Times boldly featured “Dancing With the Stars” on the front page of Monday’s Sports section. Accompanied by a dominant color picture, the article, about a non-sport, clearly moved The Times toward its apparent goal of total non-relevance.

Mike Macdonald

North Hills

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With his many stories dedicated to horse racing and open-wheel racing, along with others based on tennis and boxing, I was curious if Mr. Dwyre submits these on papyrus, or is he still using stone tablets?

Jayson Romero

Highland

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