Former NBA Executive Urges Lakers to Fire Rob Pelinka Next

Sep 25, 2025; El Segundo, CA, USA: Los Angeles Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka, left, speaks during a press conference to preview the 2025-26 season at UCLA Health Training Center. Mandatory Credit: William Liang-Imagn Images | William Liang-Imagn Images

The Los Angeles Lakers made headlines last week after letting go several of their front office staff members, including the sons of former owner Dr. Jerry Buss, Jesse and Joey, who worked in various roles for the team over the past decade.

The reshaping of the Lakers front office comes after the finalization of the team's sale, as an ownership group led by billionaire Mark Walter takes over from the Buss family.

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Joey and Jesse were credited with bringing several free agents and draft picks into the organization, however there are some in the league who think the credit the two brothers are given is exaggerated.

“I really liked the move of getting rid of Joey and Jesse," a former NBA executive told NBA insider Ashish Mathur. "Everyone always gives them credit for finding Austin [Reaves], but Austin chose to work out for the Lakers and chose not to get drafted by the Pistons so he could land with the Lakers. That wasn’t some grand find by the Buss brothers. That was all Austin and his camp."

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Walter and the Lakers' ownership might not be done making changes to the front office, Mathur reported.

General manager Rob Pelinka has been with the Lakers since March 2017, helping the team acquire star forward LeBron James in one of the biggest free agent signings in recent history and making the consequential — albeit, perhaps obvious — decision to trade for star guard Luka Doncic. Under Pelinka, the Lakers have made the playoffs five times, winning the NBA Finals in 2020.

Pelinka's squad is off to a hot start this season, despite missing James for the first 14 games of the year. However, there are some in the league who think the Lakers' restructure should take another victim in Pelinka.

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"The Lakers won't win a title in the Luka [Doncic] era if they keep Rob," the former executive told Mathur. "Mark needs to hire someone with a smarter basketball mind than Rob to run the basketball operations."

Another reason the new-look Lakers might end up getting rid of Pelinka stems from Walter's relationship with Lakers legend Magic Johnson, who is a part of the Dodgers' ownership group with Walter. Johnson openly accused Pelinka of "backstabbing" him while Johnson served as the Lakers president of basketball operations until April 2019.

“Mark and Magic [Johnson] are super close," the former executive said. "Don’t think for a second that Magic has forgiven Rob for all the backstabbing he did.”

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