Quake Griffin wrote:She is.
So was Ballmer. People learn.
Don't think they're comparable at all. Ballmer didn't know how to run a basketball team specifically, but he was experienced in running a big business and knew all the concepts about hiring the right executives and empowering them. Whatever you think about his past acumen, he had the right attitude and the right experience. His biggest mistake was empowering the wrong person in Doc, but that's a mistake most people would make coming in as outsiders, and he learned from it at the first turn. Jeannie doesn't have that experience, and more importantly, the attitude to recognize how to look for the right guy, or supporting him in the long term. She seems way too immersed in her romanticized idea of "Laker culture" and more interested in silly things, like controlling the news cycle, than in the actual work of running a basketball team. Remember Dolan also pledged to stay away from basketball operations -and has kept his word for the most part- and yet the tone he sets still pours to the rest of the organization.
I don't see how she'd be able to pry one of the big names like Ujiri, Presti or Buford from another organization, with the way they're portraying themselves. And even if she lucks into a competent guy, like say they hire Hinkie and give him full power, I'm sure they'd find a way to get in the middle of it. Very rarely a team finds sustainable success with a bad owner at the top. Very very rarely. Success always starts at the top, or dies quickly if you stumble into it.
But mostly, it doesn't seem like they're close to being able to spot what makes a good basketball executive and what doesn't.
