The Los Angeles Lakers are in the midst of a season where they’re trying to compete for a championship, and while contending, they are undergoing changes in the front office.
The latest addition comes from the college ranks to help their draft personnel.
Lakers Add College Legend to Their Front Office
New Lakers majority owner Mark Walter recently appointed Lon Rosen as president of business operations, with Rob Pelinka handling the basketball side. The Lakers also added a draft advisor: Tony Bennett.
The Lakers welcome Tony Bennett as NBA Draft Advisor. pic.twitter.com/OKA0PslGoY
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) February 25, 2026
Bennett was a fixture in college basketball before abruptly stepping away from the 2024 season. At the time of his retirement, Bennett stated he was no longer the right man to lead Virginia’s basketball program into the future.
His reasoning for retiring is unclear, but college coaching was changing dramatically when Bennett decided to call it quits.
Before retiring, Bennett was a legend both as a player and as a coach. He was a star under his father, Dick Bennett, at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay. He averaged more than 19 points per game and shot better than 50% from the floor as a point guard for the Phoenix.
Once Bennett finished college, he had a short pro career with the Charlotte Hornets before discovering that coaching was his calling.
Bennett spent three years as the coach at Washington State before moving to Virginia in 2009. From there, Bennett built a powerhouse, piling up 433 wins during his tenure and winning more than 71% of his games. He also won the National Coach of the Year award three times at Virginia, most recently in 2018.
The crowning achievement for him, however, was winning the national championship in 2019, just one year after becoming the first No. 1 seed to be bounced in the first round.
Now, Bennett is working in a new role as NBA draft advisor to Pelinka, the Lakers’ president of basketball operations, who will be tasked with building the next generation of the Lakers amid LeBron James’s retirement and free agency looming.
The Lakers are likely to pick late in the draft, even if James departs at some point, thanks to last year’s acquisition of Luka Dončić.
Bennett can offer unique expertise from his time in the college game and his knowledge of what coaches look for in the context of their programs. He can also provide insight into what each player was likely asked to do, having coached against many of the coaches still in the college ranks.
The Lakers will not be in full rebuild mode this offseason, but they will likely have to build a new team around Dončić, starting with the decision whether to re-sign Austin Reaves.
Some of the best teams in the NBA have found players later in the draft.
With the Lakers unable to pick in the lottery due to their success, they’ll have to find the next success story at the bottom of the first or second round. They’re hoping that Bennett can help them uncover those diamonds in the rough.
