Arizona basketball: Jud Buechler to coach Lakers in NBA Summer League; LA officially hires Miles Simon

The Lakers are loaded with former Arizona Wildcats

With Luke Walton as their head coach and Miles Simon, Jud Buechler, and Jesse Mermuys on staff as assistant coaches, the Los Angeles Lakers have become a haven for University of Arizona graduates.

Their Summer League team is no exception.

Buechler, who L.A. hired last summer, will be coaching the Lakers in Las Vegas Summer League, according to Mark Medina of the Southern California News Group.

After playing at the University of Arizona from 1986-1990 under Lute Olson, Buechler spent 12 seasons in the NBA and is most notable for winning three championships with the Chicago Bulls in the 1990s.

However, he is entering just his second year as a coach at a major level.

L.A. is expected to have one of the better rosters in Las Vegas, headlined by former UCLA Bruin Lonzo Ball and former Duke Blue Devil Brandon Ingram, who were both No. 2 overall picks.

The Lakers also have former Utah Ute Kyle Kuzma, who they selected late in the first round of the 2017 NBA Draft, and former Villanova star Josh Hart.

They begin Summer League play against the LA Clippers on July 7 at 5:30 p.m. PT, and will square off against Kadeem Allen and the Boston Celtics on Saturday, July 8 at 5:30 p.m. PST.

Both games will be televised on ESPN.

Lakers officially hire Miles Simon

In May, it was reported that Miles Simon would be joining Luke Walton’s coaching staff in Los Angeles. On Tuesday, the Lakers officially announced the hire.

“I'm so thankful and blessed to be able to have this opportunity to work for such a great franchise like the Lakers,” Simon tweeted.

I'm so thankful and blessed to be able to have this opportunity to work for such a great franchise like the @lakers #LakeShow https://t.co/aCS4do64ss

— Miles Simon (@milessimon) June 27, 2017

Here’s the press release in its entirety:

EL SEGUNDO - The Los Angeles Lakers have hired Miles Simon as an assistant coach, it was announced today by General Manager Rob Pelinka.

Simon joins Luke Walton’s staff after serving as a prep coach with USA Basketball. Most recently, Simon served as head coach of the 2017 USA Junior National Select Team for the Nike Hoops Summit, leading the USA to a victory over the World Select Team. Simon won gold medals as an assistant for the 2016 USA Men’s U17 World Championship Team, as well as the 2015 USA Men’s U16 National Team. In addition to his work with USA Basketball, Simon has spent each of the last nine NBA off-season’s working in a player development role with some of the league’s top talent and served as the Director of the Nike Basketball Academy last summer. Simon has also worked as a college basketball analyst for ESPN.

The Arizona alumnus was the 1997 NCAA Tournament MOP after leading the Wildcats to a National Championship as a junior. Upon graduation, Simon played one season for the Orlando Magic (1998-99), before spending time playing oversees and in the CBA. At the conclusion of his playing career, Simon spent three seasons (2005-08) as an assistant coach at Arizona on Lute Olson’s staff.

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Follow Ryan Kelapire on Twitter at @RKelapire

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