Even LeBron James himself was pretty upset when he learned that now-former Los Angeles Lakers teammate Jared Dudley decided to leave the squad. Dudley's contract with the Lakers came to an end this summer and the 36-year-old decided it was time to hang it up. Dudley opted to join the Dallas Mavericks as an assistant coach to Jason Kidd.

According to The Athletic’s Bill Oram, Shams Charania, and Sam Amick, the Lakers actually did their best to convince Dudley to stay. Unfortunately for them, the former Boston College standout really wanted to join the Mavs:

“At the end of the season, sources said, the Lakers did have conversations with Dudley about other potential roles in the organization, including broadcasting, but ultimately he opted for a front-of-the-bench coaching position with Jason Kidd and the Dallas Mavericks.”

Dudley is a fun dude, so he would have probably been a great fit as a commentator or an analyst. The report above also states that the Lakers offered him “other potential roles” but it does not sound like a coaching gig was on the table.

It is clear that this is the next step Dudley wants to take in his basketball career, which is why he jumped on the opportunity to join Jason Kidd's coaching staff in Dallas. The prospect of mentoring a once-in-a-lifetime talent in Luka Doncic likely weighed heavily on Dudley's decision as well.