NEWSLETTER
The Chicago Bulls may be sitting in the dumpster of the NBA right now, but at least that dumpster isn’t on fire!
Over in Los Angeles, the Lakers appear to be dealing with an even more frustrating front office situation. The sudden departure of Magic Johnson as president of basketball operations on April 9 demonstrated that the Lakers rebuild may not be going exactly according to plan. The team did sign LeBron James last July but failed to make the playoffs for the sixth year in a row.
While the team landed the No. 4 pick in this year’s draft (thanks a lot, lottery gods), things appear to be getting worse before they get better.
Honestly, I would recommend grabbing a nice snack or two and sitting in your comfiest of chairs to read through this piece. Also, feel free to grab a nice big glass of water for the inevitable spit take or two you’re bound to have.
The craziest portions of this story revolve around General Manager Rob Pelinka. The former sports agent of Kobe Bryant was brought onto the team in 2017 and has been the culprit of many interesting stories throughout the organization. And the one story that has really stuck out on Twitter revolved around the famous 2008 batman film, The Dark Knight.
According to a source, Pelinka told a story about how Bryant watched Heath Ledger’s portrayal of the Joker in the film and then met with him to discuss Ledger’s mental preparation before a game at Madison Square Garden. Apparently, Bryant then used that preparation in a game against the Knicks. The reason this becomes so controversial is that Ledger passed away six months before the movie even came out.
Putting aside the fact that this story is, you know, impossible, I also just can’t imagine why Bryant felt the need to gather advice before a game against the Knicks. I mean, that man averaged 26.5 ppg against them during his career and even had a game where he put up 61 points. If anything, actors should be asking for that man’s advice on how to put on a show.
The article goes on to bring up how Pelinka drafted former Michigan player Moritz Wagner without letting several important members of the organization know. Oh, and it also mentions how coaching staff members believe he is lying most of the time.
Other than that, he has just made some blatantly bizarre statements. The article mentions him comparing Lonzo Ball to Steve Jobs, and this clip about Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is just bonkers.
I still can’t believe Rob Pelinka said this about KCPpic.twitter.com/tOPcTRtFfE
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) May 28, 2019
Anyway, you should go read the story for yourself and remember that life as a Bulls fan could be plenty worse right about now. As for Pelinka, it may be time he tries to find a new gig or go back to being an agent.
In the wise words of Harvey Dent: “You either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become a villain…” or in this case, kind of crazy.
