Is Rob Pelinka untouchable due to relationship with Linda Rambis?

Rob Pelinka seems to have risen to a powerful position within the Los Angeles Lakers organization, and there is some speculation that his relationship with Linda Rambis is a big reason for that.

When Magic Johnson stepped down as the team’s president of basketball operations, there was instant talk about whom the Lakers could bring in as a replacement. We even put together a list of potential candidates they should target. Instead, Pelinka’s status as a franchise leader and decision-maker seems to have only solidified.

In his extensive piece on the Lakers published this week, ESPN’s Baxter Holmes brought up the Pelinka-Rambis dynamic. He went into more detail about it during an appearance on “The Lowe Post” podcast:

“I asked quite a bit of people: ‘Why is Linda so loyal to Rob? Why is Rob so loyal to Linda?’ And people in the organization and around the organization — deeply familiar with the Lakers — are like, ‘I’m not sure. I really don’t know, but it’s weird. And because of it, we think Rob is untouchable’ because of how much power Linda wields and how close she is to Jeanie (Buss). I would love an answer to that. I know people in the organization would love an answer to it.

“There is some reason why Linda is deeply, deeply loyal to Rob. And given who she is and the power she has, people there believe that gives him — I don’t want to say invincibility — but something within that realm.”

Rambis is the wife of Kurt Rambis, a former Lakers player, assistant coach and head coach. Both Rambises have adviser roles within the organization and were cited as the reasons the team did not hire Ty Lue as head coach. Linda has frequently been described as a top adviser to majority owner Jeanie Buss. Pelinka has been the team’s GM since March 2017.