Rob Pelinka has credibility issues, according to current and former staffers of the Los Angeles Lakers.
"We think, more often than not, he's not being truthful," a coaching staff member said. "That goes throughout the organization."
Pelinka once related a story about Kobe Bryant meeting Heath Ledger after watching "The Dark Knight."
"There was one time when Kobe, who I worked with for 18 years, was going back to play in Madison Square Garden, and he had just seen 'The Dark Knight,'" Pelinka said. "Obviously, you guys saw that movie, and he's like, 'Hey, hook me up with dinner with Heath Ledger, because he got so locked into that role. I want to know how he mentally went there.' So, he had dinner with Heath, and he talked about how he locks in for a role.
"And Kobe used some of that in his game against the Knicks."
The film was released in July 2008, six months after Ledger passed away. According to a source with direct knowledge, no such arrangement was made and no dinner took place.
Pelinka is frequently quick to say that agents or players are responsible for certain decisions, such as when the Lakers selected Mo Wagner at No. 25 last year instead of Omari Spellman, who was the highest ranked remaining player on their board.