Luke Walton speaks for the first time since being named as the Lakers next head coach

After less than a week of searching for Byron Scott's replacement, the Los Angeles Lakers hired Golden State Warriors assistant coach Luke Walton to become the franchise's 26th head coach in what was quite possibly the most exciting Friday night news dump in NBA history.

Walton's bosses in Golden State, head coach Steve Kerr and general manager Bob Meyers, instantly released statements extolling their excitement for Walton's opportunity. It didn't take much longer for Luke himself to speak out.

"I loved everything about my time at Golden State and learning from Steve," Walton told Ramona Shelburne of ESPN."I'll forever be grateful to him, the organization and the team. But I have always dreamed of being a head coach and the chance to do that for an organization like the Lakers doesn't come around very often."

Steve Kerr is not a bad guy for Walton to cite as a teacher after Kerr was just named as the NBA's Coach of the Year earlier this week. However, that award was in large part due to the culture Kerr helped create that allowed for Walton to guide the Warriors to a 39-4 start while Kerr recovered from back surgery.

Walton's dream of being a head coach has come true now, and if he can approximate even half of the success Kerr experienced in his first year as a head coach, the Lakers season will be considered a rousing success.

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