LOS ANGELES (AP) — A person familiar with the search says the Los Angeles Lakers have hired Frank Vogel as coach and Jason Kidd as an assistant.The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Saturday because Vogel's three-year contract has not been finalized. Vogel flew to Los Angeles on Thursday and met with a group that included owner Jeanie Buss and general manager Rob Pelinka.The 45-year old Vogel worked for the organization before as an advance scout during the 2005-06 season. He did not coach last season following two years with the Orlando Magic. Vogel went to Orlando following five-plus seasons leading the Indiana Pacers, including trips to the Eastern Conference finals in 2013 and '14. He has a career record of 304-291.Kidd interviewed with the Lakers last month. The former star player who was a head coach in Brooklyn and Milwaukee was fired by the Bucks during the 2017-18 season. He has a 183-190 record.The Lakers have missed the playoffs six straight seasons.... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Luke Walton is out as coach of the Los Angeles Lakers after three losing seasons.Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka announced Walton's departure Friday, three days after the abrupt resignation of president of basketball operations Magic Johnson. Pelinka called Walton leaving a mutual decision.The former Lakers forward went 98-148 after getting his first permanent head coaching job with the 16-time NBA champions. The former Golden State assistant never led the Lakers to the playoffs, not even after the arrival of LeBron James last summer.Walton leaves three days after the Lakers' final game of their 37-45 season was upstaged by the shocking pregame resignation of Johnson, who inherited Walton when he took over the Lakers' front office in February 2017. Johnson attributed his decision in part to his desire and reluctance to fire Walton, who is close to Lakers owner Jeanie Buss.A potential power struggle instead ended with both men out of their jobs after this wild week.... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Luke Walton is out as coach of the Los Angeles Lakers after three losing seasons.Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka announced Walton's departure Friday, three days after the abrupt resignation of president of basketball operations Magic Johnson. Pelinka called Walton leaving a mutual decision.The former Lakers forward went 98-148 after getting his first permanent head coaching job with the 16-time NBA champions. The former Golden State assistant never led the Lakers to the playoffs, not even after the arrival of LeBron James last summer.Walton leaves three days after the Lakers' final game of their 37-45 season was upstaged by the shocking pregame resignation of Johnson, who inherited Walton when he took over the Lakers' front office in February 2017. Johnson attributed his decision in part to his desire and reluctance to fire Walton, who is close to Lakers owner Jeanie Buss.A potential power struggle instead ended with both men out of their jobs after this wild week.... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — It's official. LeBron is a Laker.The Los Angeles Lakers announced the signing of LeBron James as a free agent Monday night, confirming the seismic shift created by the four-time NBA Most Valuable Player's decision to leave Cleveland for the 16-time champion franchise on the West Coast.James' representatives at Klutch Sports Group tweeted a photo of James signing his contract with Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka. James' agency already announced last week that the superstar had agreed to a four-year deal worth $153.3 million with Los Angeles.The Lakers have missed the playoffs in a franchise-record five consecutive seasons, while James has played in the past eight NBA Finals with the Miami Heat and the Cleveland Cavaliers, winning three titles.The 33-year-old budding entertainment mogul immediately becomes the focus of the Lakers franchise and a possible foundation for the NBA's next superteam, depending on whether James and the Lakers can persuade more superstars to... [More]

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Rajon Rondo officially joined the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday with a clear idea about his future with LeBron James."We're expected to win now," Rondo said.Rondo agreed to a one-year deal worth $9 million earlier this week to suit up alongside James, whose signing hasn't yet been announced by the Lakers.The veteran point guard is eager to be a mentor to Lonzo Ball, and he sees a chance for immediate success with the thoroughly revamped club. The Lakers haven't made the playoffs for a franchise-record five consecutive seasons, but Rondo believes they'll make immediate strides back toward contention for a 17th NBA championship."You put any group of players around LeBron James, as he has done (eight) straight times, he went to the finals," Rondo said. "So my expectations are the exact same thing. Even with the Warriors adding (DeMarcus Cousins) and the Rockets being who they are, I think we fit right up there in the mix. It is early, obviously, and I'm not promising anything,... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — From George Mikan to Kobe Bryant, superstars have been the Lakers' lifeblood for decades.LeBron James is already the biggest star of his generation, and he followed a familiar path to Los Angeles' bright lights when he decided to sign with the Lakers as a free agent.It's no coincidence that this glamorous, 16-time champion franchise has consistently attracted already great players with outsized ambition. The 33-year-old James has taken on the challenge that Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Shaquille O'Neal all accepted near the primes of their careers.Becoming a basketball superstar is one thing, and nobody is bigger than James after 15 prolific NBA seasons and three championships. Succeeding with the Lakers is something different, according to many of the men who have worn this gold jersey.Just ask Bryant, who won two Olympic gold medals as James' teammate while spending his entire 20-year career with the Lakers."The NBA does better when the Lakers are at their... [More]

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) — And now the real season begins for the Los Angeles Lakers.At least that's what the fans of the 16-time NBA champions repeatedly have been told while Los Angeles missed the playoffs and finished with a losing record for the fifth consecutive year.Ever since they took over the Lakers' basketball operations a year ago, Magic Johnson and general manager Rob Pelinka have founded their rebuilding project around the acquisition of one or two elite free agents this summer — or next summer, they've recently amended.Magic firmly believes the Lakers' championship pedigree, glamorous location and salary cap room for two enormous contracts can attract superstars near the primes of their careers to lift one of the NBA's cornerstone franchises back to its accustomed heights. The Lakers had only missed the playoffs five previous times in their first 65 years of existence before they doubled that number during this dismal half-decade.But while the pursuit of Paul George and LeBron... [More]

G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is serving a 25-day jail sentence but is allowed to leave Seal Beach (Calif.) Police Department Detention Center for both Lakers games and practices, the Los Angeles Times reported Thursday. The fifth-year guard, in his first season with the Lakers, was sentenced to 25 days in prison in Oakland County (Mich.) Jail after agreeing to a plea of allowing a person to operate his vehicle under the influence in March, stemming from when he was with the Detroit Pistons. Caldwell-Pope filed a petition to serve the sentence at the Seal Beach facility, but he must wear a GPS monitor outside the detention facility. Under terms of the work-release program, Caldwell-Pope must submit to a breathalyzer upon his return from each practice. Because he is not allowed to leave the state, Caldwell-Pope has already missed two road games. He will travel with the team for a Friday matchup against the Warriors in Oakland, but he will not be available for games at Houston and Minnesota on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day, respectively.

G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope will miss three games while he is ineligible to travel with the team over a 25-day span due to a plea agreement stemming from his DUI case in Michigan, he announced.Caldwell-Pope is not allowed to leave the state of California while attending a rehab program, meaning he will not be able to play in Los Angeles' games in Houston (Dec. 20 and Dec. 31) and Minnesota (Jan. 1). He did not play Thursday in the Lakers' 121-112 loss at Cleveland, as he was unable to get to the game in time after a court appearance in Michigan. Caldwell-Pope was cited for driving a vehicle while intoxicated on March 29 in Auburn Hills, Mich., when he was a member of the Pistons. He pleaded guilty in May to a lesser charge of allowing another individual to operate his vehicle while intoxicated.

G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was not with the team due to an unspecified personal reason.

G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope paced the Lakers with 24 points in a 113-109 loss to New York.

G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 16 points for the Lakers.

G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 29 points for the Lakers, who had not played in five days after losing at Sacramento on Wednesday. It was Caldwell Pope's third consecutive game with 20 or more points.

G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 20 points in Wednesday's 113-102 loss at Sacramento.

G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 11 of his 21 points in the closing minutes as the Lakers rallied to defeat the Bulls Tuesday night. Los Angeles went ahead 89-87 when Caldwell-Pope put back a missed 3-pointer with 3:06 remaining. Caldwell-Pope followed with two 3-pointers that stretched the lead to five each time, and the Lakers kept Chicago from getting back within one possession.

G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 15 points for the Lakers (6-8), who ended a three-game losing streak in a game where neither team had a double-digit lead until 2:30 remained.

G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope made his Lakers debut and started at shooting guard after he was suspended the first two games. He finished with 20 points in a loss against the Pelicans on Sunday."What I'm most proud about with Jordan is he's sticking with it because he was struggling in training camp, he was struggling in the preseason," Lakers coach Luke Walton said.

G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope served the second game his two-game NBA suspension on Friday night.

The Los Angeles Lakers officially signed shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, the team announced Thursday.Pope received a one-year deal worth $18 million, according to multiple reports. His agreement with the Lakers was reported earlier this week.Caldwell-Pope averaged 13.8 points, 3.3 rebounds and a career-high 2.5 assists in 76 games last season with the Pistons. He averaged 11.7 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 314 career contests since being selected by the Pistons with the eighth overall pick of the 2013 draft.Caldwell-Pope will miss the first two games of the 2017-18 season after the NBA suspended him last month following his guilty plea to operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated in Auburn Hills, Mich. He was arrested in March after police pulled him over for driving 45 mph in a 25-mph zone and a breathalyzer test displayed he had a blood-alcohol level of 0.08.Caldwell-Pope will join No. 2 overall pick Lonzo Ball as the likely starters in the Lakers' remade backcourt.

SG Kentavious Caldwell-Pope signed with the Los Angeles Lakers, the team announced Thursday. Pope received a one-year deal worth $18 million, according to multiple reports. His agreement with the Lakers was reported earlier this week. Caldwell-Pope averaged 13.8 points, 3.3 rebounds and a career-high 2.5 assists in 76 games last season with the Pistons. He averaged 11.7 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 314 career contests since being selected by the Pistons with the eighth overall pick of the 2013 draft. Caldwell-Pope will miss the first two games of the 2017-18 season after the NBA suspended him last month following his guilty plea to operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated in Auburn Hills, Mich. He was arrested in March after police pulled him over for driving 45 mph in a 25-mph zone and a breathalyzer test displayed he had a blood-alcohol level of 0.08. Caldwell-Pope will join No. 2 overall pick Lonzo Ball as the likely starters in the Lakers' remade backcourt.