Kupchak: I Have the Same Authority As Before

Mitch Kupchak came to the defense of his boss, Jim Buss, saying Friday that the Lakers top executive has not commandeered all basketball-related decisions, as recently alleged by Magic Johnson.

“I have the same authority that I had with Dr. Buss,” Kupchak said. “Jerry West had the same authority with Dr. Buss and I’ve got that same authority with Jimmy. Jimmy and I work very closely together and he does not make decisions in a vacuum.

“For some reason he gets a lot of the criticism and maybe that just comes along with a transition from an owner like Dr. Buss. But that’s not fair.”

via Bill Oram of the Orange County Register