LOS ANGELES _ Lakers president of basketball operations Magic Johnson called coach Luke Walton into a meeting on Tuesday to criticize Walton for the way the team had played in its first seven games, according to sources familiar with the meeting who weren't authorized to speak about it publicly.
The meeting, first reported by ESPN, came after the Lakers fell to 2-5 with a 124-120 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday. Lakers star LeBron James appeared frustrated after the game, but, according to sources, he did not approach Johnson with concerns about Walton and the meeting was Johnson's idea.
Johnson's displeasure with Walton surprised many people in the organization, given Johnson's insistence this summer that he would be patient through the team's early struggles. During a news conference in September, Johnson pointed to the slow starts James' teams had in Miami when he joined the Heat as a free agent in 2010 and Cleveland upon his return in 2014.
The Lakers are now 3-5. They held on to beat the Dallas Mavericks, 114-113, on Wednesday despite losing a 14-point lead in the last four minutes of the game.
Their next game will be against the Trail Blazers on Saturday in Portland.
