Jerry West Could Return as Consultant

<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Kobe Bryant can count on getting some of what he's demanding from the Lakers.

That's the feeling I'm getting from Lakerland in the wake of the blast reported Sunday by our own Ric Bucher: Kobe wants Jerry West to return as the organization's lead decision-maker if the Lakers expect Kobe to stay with them.

The most likely scenario as of Sunday night, according to team sources, is that West will indeed rejoin the Lakers as a consultant this summer after becoming a front-office free agent on July 1. This has been circulating as a possibility since the Lakers' first-round series with Phoenix. Only now, with a public plea from one of his favorite all-time players virtually upstaging the playoffs, it'll be even tougher for West to resist a homecoming.

However . . .

Club insiders stress that West is unlikely to come back to the job full-time. Very unlikely.

For a couple reasons.

For starters, West turns 69 on Monday. He has a house waiting in L.A. when his Grizzlies contract expires at the end of June, but he also has a house waiting in his native West Virginia, where son Jonnie will be playing for the Mountaineers next season. So West, at best, would consent to split time between the two homes if he can be convinced to put off retirement and rejoin his old team.

As you've undoubtedly read and heard often, West is also fiercely loyal. The thought of bumping off his under-fire prot?g?, Mitch Kupchak, is sure to turn him off. So even with Kobe imploring him to be the Lakers' savior, it's difficult to see West returning unless it's in a role that helps Kupchak.

As a consultant, West can do just that. It's a reacquisition Kupchak would have to welcome after three rough years since Shaquille O'Neal was traded away, if only because it would deflect some of the serious heat he's getting from all angles these days . . . most notably from Kobe himself. West and Kupchak, furthermore, are so close that West would inevitably have more than enough say in shaping the roster to appease Bryant.</div>

Source: ESPN

I like this role for Jerry West if he does return to the organization. There seems to be a communication problem between Jim Buss and PJax and the players (namely Kobe) in the direction the franchise needs to take. I left out Kupchak's name, because from what I can gather he's basically the numbers cruncher and files the paperwork. He also does some scouting, but I don't think he has much influence either way in personnel moves anymore.

Jerry West can serve as the middle man between Buss and PJax. All this public drama should be kept behind closed doors and hashed out in private. Using the media to get your message out is all wrong for the Buss family and Kobe.

West can find out what PJax wants and then come up with some creative solutions on how to bring more talent in.

If everyone's goal is to win NOW with Kobe, than you better start making the right moves and surround him with the consistent veterans to make a title run. The Lakers need to bring in some defensive toughness and players who are focused on winning a title and not satisfied with marginal improvement.