Rudy Offered! (UPDATE: Rudy to coach Lakers - News Conference July 10, 3pm Central)

Rudy Offered!

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Back to school

LAKERS: Tomjanovich is offered the head coaching job after Krzyzewski declines it.

11:49 PM PDT on Monday, July 5, 2004


By BRODERICK TURNERAND DAN WEBER / The Press-Enterprise

Just hours after losing out on what he said was a "longshot" attempt to lure Duke's Mike Krzyzewski out of the college ranks to be the Lakers' new head coach, General Manager Mitch Kupchak offered the job to Rudy Tomjanovich on Monday night.

According to a source close to Tomjanovich, the decision is basically up to the coachwho led the Houston Rockets to back-to-back titles in the 1990s. A deal could be worked out today with an announcement as early as Wednesday after the pair talked several times Monday, according to league sources.

While the appeal of Krzyzewski involved his favorable standing with Kobe Bryant, the hiring of Tomjanovich wouldn't help the Lakers with Shaquille O'Neal.

"I like Rudy T.," O'Neal said Monday evening in a phone conversation. "And I'd always wanted to play for him. But I'm not coming back to LA. They disrespected me."

Meanwhile Bryant, already set to meet this week with Clippers officials, was understood to be meeting today with Denver Nuggets GM Kiki Vandeweghe, who was flying in to make a pitch for Bryant to play in Denver. During the season, Bryant indicated that the Nuggets would be one of the teams he would consider.

At Monday's press conference, Krzyzewski made it clear that the Lakers' search would have to move on. While praising the "class" of the team's pursuit, in the end it was an easier decision than he'd anticipated.

"You have to follow your heart and lead with it," said Krzyzewski, 57, who has three NCAA titles and 10 Final Four appearances in his 24 seasons at Duke.

"That can only happen here."

The Lakers were offering a great deal, Krzyzewski said, including the chance to coach Bryant.

"I know Kobe," he said. "Kobe and I are very close."

But Coach K. will be staying in Carolina. Where Bryant, a free agent, decides to play is but one of the issues Kupchak is dealing with right now.

While hinting he could name a coach as early as Wednesday, Kupchak said Thursday and Friday were also "possibilities." He also said the new coach "probably" would be someone he's already talked to.

"But there's a lot we're juggling at this time," he said. "Finding a coach is one of the priorities." If getting a coach isn't necessarily his "first priority," Kupchak said, keeping Kobe Bryant might be.

"Do we want to keep Kobe Bryant?" Kupchak asked rhetorically. "Absolutely."

But in a passionate answer to a question about the perception that Bryant might be calling the shots on the coaching search, Kupchak said it wasn't unusual for the Lakers to consult players. It's something the team has done since Magic Johnson's playing days.

Yes, he said he'd talked to Bryant about coaching possibilities in the past two weeks, Kupchak admitted.

And yes, he'd not talked directly to Shaquille O'Neal, who has demanded a trade, "since the end of the season."

"We're recruiting Kobe," Kupchak said twice in this week when Bryant reportedly will sit down to talk with Clippers officials.

But the perception that Bryant contacted Krzyzewski before Kupchak went to visit him in North Carolina Thursday is incorrect.

"You can check the phone records," Kupchak said. He'd called Krzyzewski on the day of the NBA draft and the discussion proceeded from there. "If you don't ask, you don't know. I can't control what the perception is. Coach K asked if he could call Kobe."

Kupchak apologized "for the lengthy manner in which this has been drawn out."

And then he made a prediction about the next few days.

"Like our fans, I expect several sleepless nights."