Lakers Coach Mike Brown Fired

USA Today reported that Brown’s agent, Warren Legarie, confirmed the news.

Sources told ESPN.com sportswriter Marc Stein that Lakers management was planning on using the team’s upcoming six-game homestand to assess Brown’s performance, but they ultimately decided in a unanimous decision that “the team wasn't heading in the right direction.”

Brown was just a month into his second season with the Lakers. Despite high expectations, the team has struggled during its last season. The Lakers finished 41-25 in Brown's first season, but the team lost to Oklahoma City Thunder in the second round of the NBA playoffs.

Brown stepped in as the Lakers coach in the summer of 2011 after Phil Jackson retired. In an $18 million deal, Brown's contract gave him three seasons -- with a team option in the fourth.

Ironically, NBA’s Hangtime blog noted that Lakers owner, Jim Buss, expressed confidence in Brown less than 48 hours ago ahead of his firing.

"I have no problems with Mike Brown at all," Buss said. "He just works too hard and he's too knowledgeable for this to be happening.

"So either the system is flawed or something's going on. Or, like the Triangle, it's very hard to pick up and understand. I'm not a basketball mind like he is or the players are, and the players are fine with it, so I just have to be patient."

The Lakers will play Golden State Friday night at the Staples Center.