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The Los Angeles Lakers D-League affiliate, the D-Fenders, have filled their head coaching position after it remained up in air following the departure of Phil Hubbard. The team has announced Casey Owens will take over the lead role next season. Hubbard was replaced by Conner Henry, who departed for the Orlando Magic to join Scott Skiles' staff shortly after his hiring.
Owens was an assistant on the D-Fenders coaching staff during the '13-14. He has a long list of experience, which the team laid out in full in the introductory release.
The D-Fenders went 17-33 last season, while the Lakers continued to make use of their development system. The team actively used their NBA D-League affiliate throughout the previous few seasons, assigning players like Jordan Clarkson, Xavier Henry, Ryan Kelly and Robert Sacre to the team for minutes and rehab assignemnts, and also calling-up players like Jabari Brown and Manny Harris.
Having a stable situation for their development team could help the process along with the large amount of young talent the team is trying to develop. Playing time for players who aren't cracking into the rotation could be beneficial for their growth.