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As for Gasol, who is averaging a career-low 12.6 points a game and has struggled each of the past two seasons to find his place in the Lakers' offense, Buss said he expects the 7-foot Spaniard not only to revert to his previous form, but to play more in the low post, as both Gasol and Bryant have advocated. "I love Pau Gasol," Buss said. "The thing is, if you shoot the basketball from 6 feet, your percentages are going to be in the high 50s. If you shoot from 18 feet, you're lucky to get 40 percent. To base his year off of his shooting percentages is just not the right way to analyze how he's playing. "I believe if we can get him down low, he can coexist with Dwight Howard if they play enough games to where they can play off each other. I believe eventually he will move down there and D'Antoni will move him down there and his percentage will go back right to where it was." ESPN.com

Los Angeles Lakers, Trade, Pau Gasol, Dwight Howard, Jim Buss 

Very little has gone according to plan for the Los Angeles Lakers this season. So little, in fact, that executive vice president Jim Buss said Thursday it would be foolish to "blow it up" until the team has played enough games together to correctly identify why it has so badly underachieved. "We still like this team a lot," Buss said Thursday in an interview with ESPNLA 710 radio in Los Angeles. "How can you not believe in this team? This team is built to win. It's a very, very solid team. We haven't seen them all together and play together for games. In my mind, we would not consider a temporary fix or blow it up. Why blow up something we have a future with? ESPN.com

Los Angeles Lakers, Trade, Jim Buss 

"We thought Steve Nash was our future point guard for the next three years and we needed a coach we felt would fit with him," Buss said. "That was one of the main issues where we thought that D'Antoni was better than Phil. Well, not better, nobody's better than Phil, but we felt that he fit the team the way we wanted to work it. "I like D'Antoni a lot. I still believe in him 100 percent. I have no questions about him. We just have to have this team work together and play together. We just don't have enough information to analyze anything. It's just not enough data to put your finger on a problem." ESPN.com

Los Angeles Lakers, Coaching, Mike D'Antoni, Jim Buss 

Injuries and everything else aside, what if this team and its $99.2 million payroll don't make the playoffs? "We stuck our neck out with this payroll because Kobe (Bryant) is in the twilight of his career and we want to win championships," Buss said. "Now, am I upset that we might not make the playoffs? Of course. I'd be upset if I had a $10 payroll or a $200 million payroll. I want to make the playoffs and I want to win championships. But to panic? No, we're not going to panic." ESPN.com

Los Angeles Lakers, Jim Buss 

Right or wrong, Buss is a primary decision-maker along with owner Jerry Buss and General Manager Mitch Kupchak. The future of the organization relies on how he perceives the Lakers' prospects. "I'm still excited about the team but injuries have played such a huge part in this. I'm not frustrated with the players at all," Buss said. "Am I upset that we might not make the playoffs? Of course." "To panic?" asked Buss. "No, we're not going to panic." Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles Lakers, Jim Buss 

About the Lakers firing him, Brown said: “I appreciate the opportunity that the Buss family gave me and Mitch Kupchak gave me. Coaching the Lakers was an exciting, great time. It was a dream job for a lot of people, including myself. And it’s their team and so whenever, however they wanted to operate it I was okay with. It’s not my decision to talk about the decision that they made. I just live by whatever decision they make.” Orange County Register

Los Angeles Lakers, Mitch Kupchak, Coaching, Mike D'Antoni, Mike Brown, Jerry Buss, Jim Buss 

And before his team would go on to lose the first of eight straight preseason games en route to a 9-13 regular season that no one saw coming, he shared the sort of optimism and humor that are in short supply in Laker Land these days. "I like this team with (reserve center) Robert Sacre on it," Buss had joked at the time about his temporary starter. But the laughing has long since stopped for the Lakers, this so-called super team that currently sits in 12th place in the Western Conference they were supposed to dominate. They're 4-8 under Mike D'Antoni, the former Phoenix Suns and New York Knicks coach who replaced the fired Mike Brown just five games in and will make his first trip back to Madison Square Garden tonight. USA Today

Los Angeles Lakers, Coaching, Mike D'Antoni, Jim Buss 

"It's very frustrating, because I think there are many little factors that are causing the issues that we're having," Buss wrote in a text message to USA TODAY Sports on Wednesday. "Nash, injuries, (a) new system. Like I said before, there are a lot of little ones, but the ones that figure to help the most would be Nash returning (and) Gasol returning and just playing together in a new system." USA Today

Los Angeles Lakers, Coaching, Mike D'Antoni, Jim Buss 

"I think the system is fine when you have someone like Nash running it," Buss wrote. "I personally like the system, because - like Mike says - you can always tweak it to fit the players." USA Today

Los Angeles Lakers, Steve Nash, Coaching, Mike D'Antoni, Jim Buss 

On the Lakers: “Jimmy Buss strikes again. … (Mike) Brown was horribly inept. He was terrible in timeouts. His practices were long and useless. He made bad adjustments. His players ridiculed him behind his back. But Jimmy Buss didn’t want Phil Jackson back, and one of the reasons is the competition that exists among the siblings, meaning Jeannie Buss. So if Phil is back, then Jeannie has more influence probably than Jimmy does. So I think he was looking for a way to not hire Phil despite the clamor from the local media and the fans, so he made up a whole bunch of stuff — Phil wanted $18 (million), Phil didn’t want to go to road games, blah blah blah, which was all total nonsense. Lies. So he goes for the gold, the glitter, by bringing Mike D’Antoni is, which is a bad fit. D’Antoni doesn’t know what to do with post-up players.” SheridanHoops

Los Angeles Lakers, Phil Jackson, Coaching, Mike D'Antoni, Mike Brown, Jim Buss 

Kobe Bryant, appearing on the premiere episode of Jim Rome’s new show on Showtime—which debuts on Wednesday night—was noncommittal about the wisdom of the Los Angeles Lakers firing coach Mike Brown, but did express his support for Lakers vice president Jim Buss, who has been spearheading the team’s major decisions. Last week, Lakers icon Magic Johnson said, “I don't believe in Jim Buss,” pointing to the hiring of Brown in the first place and to the decision to pass on Phil Jackson in order to hire Mike D’Antoni. Sporting News

Los Angeles Lakers, Kobe Bryant, Phil Jackson, Coaching, Mike D'Antoni, Mike Brown, Jim Buss 

Bryant respectfully disagreed. “I value Magic's opinion, as we all do,” Bryant told Rome. “He's been the face of this franchise for so many years. I mean, he's the Laker legend. … But I can only speak from personal experience and my dealings with Jim; he's been great with me outside of the Mike Brown hiring which I didn't know anything about. You know everything else we have just kind of been in constant communications, constant dialogue about it. "He's made some incredible moves this offseason and hasn't been afraid to pull the trigger on some trades that at first initially might raise an eyebrow but he believes in doing the right thing by the organization and so far it seems to be working.” Sporting News

Los Angeles Lakers, Kobe Bryant, Phil Jackson, Coaching, Mike D'Antoni, Mike Brown, Magic Johnson, Jim Buss 

After spending the past week criticizing Mike D'Antoni's hire as Lakers coach both on Twitter and on ESPN, Magic Johnson wants to stop lamenting Phil Jackson getting passed over for the position. "You have to let D'Antoni get in there and wait and see what's going to happen," Johnson said in an interview with this newspaper. "It's too bad it's not Phil. That's who I wanted. But Jim Buss and Mitch made a decision. We as Lakers fans just have to see how it works out." Los Angeles Daily News

Los Angeles Lakers, Phil Jackson, Coaching, Mike D'Antoni, Magic Johnson, Jim Buss 

Johnson is presuming that the call was left to Jim Buss and not Jerry Buss, which might be more of an accurate reflection of how the decision was made. "Obviously he's entitled to his opinion. I'm disappointed he feels that way," General Manager Mitch Kupchak said. "I respect his opinion but I don't agree." So how exactly did the Lakers go from nearly 95% sure Jackson was their man to D'Antoni? "When we relieved Mike [Brown] of his duties, clearly what we anticipated took place, which was a groundswell of support for Phil Jackson," Kupchak said. "To be honest with you, by late Friday night after the game and early Saturday morning, if we had to make a decision at that point ... statistically there was a real good chance that Phil Jackson would be our coach. We just felt there was so much public support, it might be difficult not to hire him." Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles Lakers, Phil Jackson, Mitch Kupchak, Coaching, Mike D'Antoni, Mike Brown, Magic Johnson, Jerry Buss, Jim Buss 

Dave McMenamin: Kobe on Jim Buss: "I can only speak from my perspective and my dealings with Jim and he’s been phenomenal" Twitter @mcten

Los Angeles Lakers, Kobe Bryant, Jim Buss 

"Make no mistake about it, Jerry Buss made the final call on firing Mike Brown, passing over Jackson and ultimately deciding on D'Antoni," confirmed an NBA source who requested anonymity. "The management structure is a democracy up to a certain point; but when something very big comes up, Jerry makes the decision. FoxSportsWest.com

Los Angeles Lakers, Phil Jackson, Coaching, Mike D'Antoni, Mike Brown, Jerry Buss, Jim Buss 

"That's not to say he overrules his guys all the time -- he doesn't. But if he disagrees, he uses his veto power to do what is in the best interests of his organization. He's overruled Kupchak and he even went against Jerry West sometimes. They would have animated discussions, and Dr. Buss would listen, then sometimes do what he wanted." FoxSportsWest.com

Los Angeles Lakers, Phil Jackson, Coaching, Mike D'Antoni, Mike Brown, Jerry Buss, Jim Buss 

Mike Trudell: Kobe credited Jim Buss as playing an essential role (alongside Kupchak) in acquiring Nash & Howard. Buss suggested first call to Nash. Twitter @LakersReporter

Los Angeles Lakers, Kobe Bryant, Mitch Kupchak, Steve Nash, Dwight Howard, Jim Buss 

Asked by ESPNLosAngeles.com if he'd heard about Johnson's on-air comments, Jim Buss said, "But I believe in Magic as I always have." ESPN.com

Los Angeles Lakers, Magic Johnson, Jim Buss 

Arash Markazi: Magic Johnson: "I love Dr. Buss but I don't believe in Jim Buss." Twitter @ArashMarkazi

Los Angeles Lakers, Magic Johnson, Jerry Buss, Jim Buss