Lakers News: Rob Pelinka, Magic Johnson Back Luke Walton Despite Rocky Season

Los Angeles Lakers president of basketball operations Magic Johnson and general manager Rob Pelinka both backed head coach Luke Walton on Friday during their exit interviews with reporters.

"We really bonded and formed a great relationship, Luke and I, and we look forward to working with Luke for many years to come," Johnson said, according to Lakers.com's Mike Trudell. 

Pelinka added that while Walton appears to have a calm disposition from afar, he was struck by his burning desire to win. 

"The trait in Luke I was most impressed by is his fiery competitiveness ... he’s just a pitbull," he said. 

The Lakers went 35-47 during Walton's second year at the helm, a mark that represented a nine-win improvement over his first season on the bench. 

Plus, the Purple and Gold finished 12th in defensive rating (105.6) after ranking dead last (110.6) in that category a season ago. 

"The overall goal that I'm most proud of is that we finished 12th in defense," Walton said, according to Lakers.com's Joey Ramirez. "... We started day one of training camp doing nothing but defense and talking about nothing but defense."

Factor in the development of youngsters Brandon Ingram, Kyle Kuzma, Lonzo Ball and Josh Hart, and Walton has plenty to be proud of as he turns his attention toward snapping a five-year postseason drought when the 2018-19 season rolls around.