Bennett was a three-time National Coach of the Year at Virginia and Washington State University, but is most known for his time with the Cavaliers whom he led to a national championship in 2019. He is UVA’s all-time leader in coaching victories and is one of just three coaches to be named ACC Coach of the Year four times, along with Mike Krzyzewski and Dean Smith.

“We’re thrilled and honored to welcome Tony as an advisor to the Lakers basketball operations department,” Pelinka said.  “As we refine and build out our NBA draft and scouting processes, we could think of no better basketball mind than Tony Bennett to have as a resource. Tony’s track record of forming culture, with high-character, high-skill and high-IQ players is revered and respected across all basketball circles. Tony will be an incredible asset to our basketball leadership, to our scouts and to our draft department as a whole. We are truly excited.”

With Mark Walter officially taking over as owner of the Lakers, it has been spoken about that the franchise would be undergoing some organizational changes and really building out their front office under Pelinka and Bennett represents a great addition to an important piece of the puzzle in drafting the right players.

“When Rob and I began talking, what stood out to me was the chance to help out such a storied organization,” Bennett said. “The Lakers carry a tradition that speaks for itself, so to be connected to it and assist Rob and the Lakers in any way I can is exciting.”

Bennett compiled a .719 win percentage over 18 seasons at Washington State and Virginia, producing 13 players who would go on to be drafted Klay Thompson, De’Andre Hunter and Malcolm Brogdon. Prior to getting into coaching Bennett was the 35th overall pick in the 1992 NBA Draft and played four seasons in the NBA, three of those coming with the Charlotte Hornets.

Lon Rosen outlines Magic Johnson’s involvement with Lakers

The Lakers also made another big hire with Lon Rosen taking over as President of Business Operations. Rosen has ties with the Lakers and specifically the legendary Magic Johnson whom Rosen says will be around the team, but won’t have any day-to-day involvement.

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He wasted no time doing that by hiring Lon Rosen to be the organization’s president of business operations, replacing Tim Harris who is leaving the organization at the end of this season.

One thing that seemingly won’t be changing is Rob Pelinka running basketball operations as he recently revealed that he and team Governor Jeanie Buss will remain in their current roles.

That was confirmed by Rosen, who spoke to the media for the first time and stated that Pelinka will remain president of basketball operations, via Dave McMenamin of ESPN:

New Lakers president of business operations Lon Rosen told reporters this evening that Rob Pelinka will remain as the team’s president of basketball operations and while Earvin “Magic” Johnson will surely be around the franchise, no official title is planned for him with LAL

— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) February 25, 2026

Rosen used to be the long-time agent of Magic Johnson, who has also worked with him in the Dodgers organization the past handful of years. Because of that, it’s not surprising to see that Johnson will continue to be around the Lakers, even if it’s not in an official capacity.

Johnson, of course, has a checkered past with Pelinka dating back to when they ran the front office together from 2017-19 before the former resigned.

According to recent reports, the Lakers are planning to model their front office after the Dodgers, which means they will likely make some additions this offseason, even if Pelinka will continue to be in charge.

Lon Rosen outlines goals in new role with Lakers

Lon Rosen expressed his excitement to be returning to the Lakers organization and outlined his goals in his new role.

“I’m beyond grateful to Jeanie and Mark for trusting me with this incredible opportunity,” said Rosen. “As everyone knows, the economics of the sports business are constantly changing – and they will continue to do so.

“But, at root, my job is a simple one: figuring out how to do right by our employees and our partners while ensuring that the Lakers continue to provide an unparalleled experience for our fans in Los Angeles and around the world. I look forward to working alongside Jeanie, Rob and the whole front-office team to make that happen.”

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The goal of this is to provide motivation to the team and help to build the desired culture within the Lakers locker room and organization as a whole by connecting them with celebrities throughout sports and entertainment who have unique experiences themselves.

Saturday provided the latest edition of the series as the Lakers traveled Riviera Country Club, home to The Genesis Invitational, where the team spoke with whom most consider the greatest golfer of all-time in Tiger Woods, via ESPN’s Dave McMenamin:

The Lakers continued their “Genius Talks” series with a field trip to Riviera Country Club on Saturday for the Genesis Invitational, with Rob Pelinka arranging a visit and address from Tiger Woods for the team (: @Lakers) pic.twitter.com/jA8EgPcXRF

— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) February 22, 2026

Considering some of the absolute golf fanatics on this Lakers roster, namely Austin Reaves and LeBron James, this had to be one of the most anticipated talks of the entire series. To be able to take a trip to Riviera had to be an amazing experience for everyone and as is seen in the photo, basically the entire roster is there taking it all in.

Woods also has such a unique story as he is one of the few athletes that was on the level of a James, Kobe Bryant or Michael Jordan in terms of popularity and visibility around the world and pure dominance in his sport. He has also dealt with all of the pitfalls that come with being a celebrity of that stature so he undoubtedly has plenty to share in so many aspects of sport and life.

James revealed what he asked the legend when they spoke, via Dan Woike of The Athletic:

“I asked him what the difference in the challenges of climbing the ranks was,” he told The Athletic. “What was the hardest challenge? Was it more of a challenge or harder to climb from zero to No. 1 — or stay at No. 1 knowing everybody was chasing you?”

“Staying there. Staying at one. Staying the best player in the world,” James said. “When you got everybody chasing you and trying to knock you off the mountaintop, that’s more challenging. I mean, it’s hard getting up, you know, from zero to one. But my mindset when I left high school, I told myself that I gotta start back at zero, though.

“I knew I was the No. 1 player in the country as a high school senior and probably high school junior. But when I got to the NBA, I said, ‘I’m starting from zero, and now, I gotta get back to one again.’”

The “Genius Talks” series has been something that Pelinka has continued throughout his tenure and is great in allowing the Lakers to come together on things outside of basketball and help that chemistry and closeness grow.

Pat Riley: Lakers picked right head coach in JJ Redick

The Lakers believe they have the right head coach in place to lead this team to great success for years to come in JJ Redick. And legendary coach and executive Pat Riley feels the same way.

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Of course, since the sale to Walter occurred in the middle of the season, there won’t be many significant changes made immediately, but in the offseason that is expected to shift. Walter’s influence will begin taking shape, but that will all still take place under the direction of Lakers governor Jeanie Buss and general manager Rob Pelinka.

Pelinka recently spoke about this, saying that when these structural changes begin to be implemented this offseason, it will be him and Jeanie leading the way, along with the support of Walter, via Dave McMenamin of ESPN:

Beyond stating that one of those expected changes will be hoping to mimic the Dodgers’ draft process and farm system structure, Pelinka made it clear what the Lakers’ power structure will be when implementing those changes.

“Led by myself and Jeanie,” he said, “and with Mark’s support.”

It is already known that Buss will continue to serve as Lakers governor for the next five years and she and Pelinka have been in lock step for many years now. Even with Walter now owning the Lakers, it looks as if Pelinka will continue to be right alongside Buss as the franchise moves into this next era.

Walter has experienced a ton of success with the Dodgers and plans on implementing a lot of the same systems and values into the Lakers. Everything can’t be replicated as the rules in the NBA are very different from the MLB, but the Lakers are already consulting with members of the Dodgers, such as president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, and the franchise is expected to build out their front office staff this offseason.

The end goal is to get the Lakers back to the top of the NBA mountain and Buss and Pelinka will continue to lead that charge under the guise of Walter, who has experienced nothing but success with the Dodgers and plans to continue that with the Lakers.

Rob Pelinka details conversations with Mark Walter on modeling Lakers after Dodgers

Rob Pelinka also spoke on the conversations he’s had with owner Mark Walter about modeling the Lakers organizationally after the Dodgers.

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General manager Rob Pelinka and governor Jeanie Buss are still the head decision-makers for the Lakers, but Walter has gotten significantly increased input.

The Lakers are now entering a multi-year process of modeling their own front office to reflect that of the Dodgers. Led by Andrew Friedman and one of MLB’s deepest scouting, analytics and development teams, the Dodgers have won back-to-back World Series’ while maintaining one of the best farm systems in baseball.

Baseball and basketball are obviously much different in terms of league structure, but it can only help the Lakers to try and be more like their L.A. counterparts. Friedman and Walter have been providing counsel to Pelinka, who appreciates everything they’ve done up to this point, via Dave McMenamin of ESPN:

“[It’s] been great to have sort of outside allies and advocates looking at the Dodgers and the success they’ve had and what they’ve built over there, and being able to tap into a person like Andrew Friedman for best practices,” Pelinka said.

Pelinka gave high praise to Friedman, who has been viewed by many as the architect of the budding Dodgers dynasty:

“He’s so incredibly smart and has done such an amazing job bringing championships to the Dodgers,” Pelinka said. “So just to have another head of another team that you can, whether it’s a roster move, whether it’s a staff move, just someone that you can talk to has been an incredible resource.”

The Lakers modeling themselves after the Dodgers could come with significant changes. Those were all laid out in a conversation between Walter, Pelinka and Buss:

“When Mark bought the team, Jeanie and I did a really deep dive with him on sort of the areas he wants to grow and move into and get aggressive,” Pelinka said. “Looking at the Dodgers and how they built it out has been a great sort of example and North Star. And so we’re still going through that process of how we’ll look in the offseason and what additions we’ll make. But there will be some positive changes, and we will build things out.”

When getting into specifics, Pelinka mentioned the depth and spending power of the Dodgers’ operation:

“[The Dodgers], just the way they’ve sort of built out their front office, how deep it is — there is no expense they’ll spare in being the best sort of front office in the world,” Pelinka said.

All of that is music to the ears of Lakers fans, who would love to see a more significant investment in things like scouting and analytics. Running a small front office is extremely limiting in the modern NBA, as it doesn’t allow for some of the creativity that has been displayed from teams like the Oklahoma City Thunder in their dealings.

Pelinka and Buss, for now, are still leading that charge. But with some help behind them, they could revive the Lakers franchise to more than just a star destination.

Rob Pelinka believes Lakers were aggressive at trade deadline

The Lakers made one move at the trade deadline, sending Gabe Vincent and a 2032 second-round pick to the Atlanta Hawks for Luke Kennard. However, Pelinka still saw their deadline approach as aggressive, saying that they were aggressive in rejecting bad offers to keep optionality ahead of a very important summer.

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