Lamar Odom Believes Juwan Howard Can Handle LeBron James

With Monty Williams out of the picture, the Los Angeles Lakers head coaching search has been whittled down to three. These are Tyronn Lue, Juwan Howard, and Jason Kidd. And if recent suggestions are to be believed, Lue is the odds-on favorite to earn the nod.

The logic behind Lue as the overwhelming favorite is understandable. He is a former Laker and he does have head coaching experience. In fact, he was the one calling the shots for the Cleveland Cavaliers with James and company won the back in 2016. But in the eyes of some, that was half-baked since Lue took over from erstwhile coach David Blatt.

Lue had the chance to make believers out of doubters but the two trips he had to the NBA Finals (2017 and 2018) both ended up in losses to the Golden State Warriors. But that is not really the point of contention here. It is about who can work better with James.

Ironically, Lue is not the only one in the list of coaching candidates who hold ties with the three-time NBA champion. Juwan Howard was James’ teammate with the Miami Heat and both do know each other well. The only hindsight here is that Howard has no head coaching experience compared to Lue, although he did leave a good impression when the Lakers top brass interviews him, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Now, a former Laker has aired his piece – Lamar Odom. The 39-year-old big man suited up for the purple and gold from 2004 to 2011 and was part of the 2009 and 2010 champion squads. As far as he is concerned, it should be Howard being the frontrunner in the Laker head coaching search and not Lue, TMZ reported.

"Somebody that has some presence. Somebody that can handle having LeBron on your team," Odom said.

It would be best to take note that this is Odom’s sentiments and the fact that Lue has been mentioned as the favorite to be named as the next Lakers head coach. It may only be a matter of time before this is revealed although a (remote) twist of fate could see Howard (or maybe even Kidd) being named.

However, the recent developments point to this being moot and academic. Former Lakers head coach Phil Jackson and former team president Earvin “Magic” Johnson has reportedly endorsed Lue and that Los Angeles is already drawing up an offer, Lake Show Life reported.