Lakers Fire Mike Brown And Court A Former Sun To Replace

Bernie Bickerstaff coaches tonight, but in the long term the the firing of Mike Brown could result in yet another name very familiar to the fans of the valley leading the Los Angeles Lakers. On the court Steve Nash will lead the show and on the sideline -- according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports -- the inventor of the Seven Seconds or Less offense, Mike D'Antoni, could be the teams next head coach.

"As Lakers ownership has been considering firing Brown, Mike D'Antoni has been a prominent name discussed as replacement, sources tell Y!" @WojYahooNBA

If that ends up happening sooner verses later then next Friday's tilt between the Suns and Lakers just became even more of a must watch if that is even possible.

Realistically that is not going to happen as D'Antoni is on the heels of knee replacement surgery and is currently not on his feet.

There are many factors that can contribute to recovery time, but typically patients can return to normal life activities within 1 to 6 months. According to BonesSmart.org

Meaning D'Antoni would not be able to coach until early December at the EARLIEST. So in the mean time that game just became more winnable as the former Charlotte Bobcats coach will be holding the clipboard in the mean time.

This would be a perfect situation for D'Antoni as the Lakers do not appear to be interested in playing any defense, have no bench to speak of, and are loaded with All-Star caliber players in the starting line-up. He does not have to create a Quinton Richardson or a Boris Diaw, a first for the coach who will push the pace of the traditionally methodical Lakers offense.

In four years with the Phoenix Suns D'Antoni's offense was first in the NBA in points per game, always in the top four in pace, and won an average of 58 games each year. He is an accomplished coach from his years with the Denver Nuggets and the New York Knicks as well.

There are other names out there of course, this is the Los Angeles Lakers. The list includes Phil Jackson, Jerry Sloan, Nate McMillan, Brian Shaw, and any of the guys on the bench with Bickerstaff like Eddie Jordan.

Adding D'Antoni gives the Lakers a coach that Steve Nash and Kobe Bryant are very familiar with. It also would inject some excitement into the likes of Pau Gasol and Dwight Howard as he would be the best, most creative offensive coach they have every played under.

It is a marriage that makes sense for the Lakers and would be another familiar reminder to Suns fans that other teams reap the work of their organization while they are sitting on the sideline watching. The Lakers would become the Devil that the Suns know, all too well.