Frank Vogel was fired after the Los Angeles Lakers endured "a disappointing season at every level", according to general manager Rob Pelinka.
The Lakers missed out on a place in the NBA playoffs after a 33-49 season saw them finish 11th in the Western Conference, costing the head coach his job on Monday.
Vogel led the Lakers to the NBA championship in his first season at the helm, but a poor campaign has seen him removed from the post just 18 months later.
Speaking after the announcement of Vogel's departure, the Lakers' vice-president of basketball operations and general manager Pelinka said the time had come for a change.
"I want to thank him for three really strong years," Pelinka said of Vogel. "We just felt like it was time for a change in our leadership voice. Frank is a great man, a great coach and will go on to do great things.
"This was a disappointing Lakers season at every level. In the face of disappointment, our fans expect more, and that's at every facet.
"I think when you have disappointment, you need to take ownership of that and vow to make the adjustments to be better. That's where the work starts today.
"We've been in this place before and we know what it takes to put in the work to fix it, and that's where our energy and time will be spent in the coming days."
In his 19th season in the league, Lakers star LeBron James averaged 30.3 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.2 assists in 37.2 minutes per game.
Pelinka acknowledged the roster assembled for this season was not good enough, but felt confident the Lakers can experience success again in the future, with James remaining their lynchpin.
"We need to do all we can to be caretakers of his legacy and to try to build the best team we can around him," he added. "We had the objective for that last year and obviously this roster did not work.
"But there's a great level of trust in our collaboration with him to make sure we get it right this summer and fix it.
"I don't know exactly how long LeBron will play but, of course, this year he played at the highest level. [It was] an incredible year for him offensively, and he feels highly motivated to return next year and have another elite level of play.
"If our team had found a way to win more, he would have been in the MVP conversation. For him to play at that level in the 19th year of his career is jaw-dropping, and his motivation to come back and do that again next year was palpable in my exit interview with him.
"Every indication we've received is that he sees the Lakers as his home."
Heat rally in fourth quarter to even NBA Finals at 1-1
Gabe Vincent scored 23 points and helped spark a fourth-quarter rally that propelled the Miami Heat to a 111-108 win over the Denver Nuggets on Sunday in Game 2 of the NBA Finals, evening the championship series at 1-1.
The Heat overcame an eight-point deficit to start the fourth quarter to snap the Nuggets' seven-game winning streak and send the series to Miami all tied. Game 3 will take place Wednesday.
Denver also was handed its first loss in 10 home games during this postseason despite another big effort from two-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokić, who poured in 41 points on 16-of-28 shooting along with 11 rebounds.
Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo each contributed 21 points for the Heat, while Duncan Robinson scored all 10 of his points during a pivotal 15-2 run to open the fourth quarter that sent Miami ahead to stay.
Jokic scored the final six points of the third quarter to give the Nuggets an 83-75 lead that turned out to be short-lived. Robinson had the first eight points of Miami's momentum-shifting surge, and Vincent later added a 3-pointer before hitting two free throws that put the Heat up 90-85 with nine minutes remaining.
Miami held a 107-95 advantage after Caleb Martin's 3-pointer with 3:39 left to play, but the Nuggets responded with a late charge to put the outcome back in doubt.
Aaron Gordon and Jamal Murray hit 3-pointers to ignite an 11-2 run Murray capped with another triple that pulled Denver within 109-106 entering the final minute.
After Jokic countered two Butler free throws with a short turnaround jumper with 35.6 seconds left, Butler missed a 3-pointer on the ensuing possession to give the Nuggets a chance to tie.
Murray misfired on a step-back 3-point try with 1.9 seconds left, however, and Martin grabbed the rebound as time expired.
Denver, which led by as many as 15 points in the first half, had been 11-0 this postseason when holding a double-digit lead.
Miami Heat rally late against Denver Nuggets to even NBA finals series
The Miami Heat produced a fourth-quarter comeback to win the second game of the NBA finals 111-108 and even up the seven-match series against the Denver Nuggets.
The Heat trailed by eight heading into the final period, having trailed by 15 earlier in the game in the wake of another massive performance from Nikola Jokic.
Jokic scored 41 points, scoring 16 of 28 shots from the floor including one with 36 seconds remaining which cut the Heat’s lead to three points.
But after Jimmy Butler missed on Miami’s next possession, Jamal Murray was unable to tie the scores with an effort on the buzzer.
The defeat was Denver’s first since May 7 and they had won all 11 play-off games in which they had opened a double-digit lead.
They had trailed 21-10 in the opening quarter before a barrage of three-point scores helped them to a 44-32 advantage which had been trimmed to six points at the break.
And Miami held on through the third quarter before the late surge that takes the series to Miami all square.
Gabe Vincent led the way for Miami with 23 points as Butler and Bam Adebayo each grabbed 21.
Knicks' Julius Randle has ankle surgery, expected healthy for 2023-24
New York Knicks forward Julius Randle underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left ankle Friday and is expected to recover in time to participate in training camp before next season.
The team announced the successful operation Saturday on Twitter.
Voted a member of the All-NBA Third Team this season, Randle was hindered down the stretch after spraining his ankle during a March 29 game against the Miami Heat and re-injuring it in the playoffs.
Randle missed the Knicks’ final five regular season games. He returned to play through the injury in 10 of New York’s 11 postseason games but averaged 16.6 points on 37.4-percent shooting from the field.
Before spraining his ankle, Randle played the first 77 games of the 2022-23 season, averaging a career-high 25.1 points, 10 rebounds and 4.1 assists while being voted to his second career All-Star Game.
This season, Randle and offseason addition Jalen Brunson led the Knicks to a 47-35 record, a No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs and a first-round series win over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
With Randle visibly hobbled, the Knicks were eliminated by the Heat in six games in the East semifinals.
Randle, 29, has two years and $58.5 million remaining on his deal, plus a $32.4 million player option in 2025-26.
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