With the Los Angeles Lakers zeroing in on JJ Redick because the front-runner to grow to be the following head coach, one of many franchise’s greatest remaining offseason questions ought to be answered comparatively quickly.
For weeks, Redick, 39, has garnered probably the most buzz for the Lakers’ vacant head teaching place in league circles. Although no ultimate determination has been made, and the Lakers nonetheless have steps of their teaching search, all indications are Redick is the emphatic favourite. As The Athletic beforehand reported, the Lakers are infatuated with Redick’s potential and think about him as a Pat Riley-like teaching prospect, in accordance with league sources.
Redick checks lots of the bins on the Lakers’ in depth guidelines for his or her subsequent coach.
The franchise views Redick because the candidate who can maximize the short-term championship window with LeBron James and Anthony Davis, but additionally drive the long-term tradition and sustainability of the Lakers’ subsequent period. He tasks as a coach who could have the gravitas to command the locker room and in addition maintain gamers accountable higher than his two predecessors, Frank Vogel and Darvin Ham.
There aren’t any doubts about Redick’s work ethic, notably compared to Ham’s. One of many widespread inside complaints with Ham was his lack of preparation. Conversely, Redick is obsessively structured and arranged, from dogmatically trying 342 game-speed pictures day-after-day in the course of the offseason as a participant to swiftly creating into one of many recreation’s premier NBA analysts and podcasters after retiring in 2021.
Redick’s intelligence, maniacal competitiveness as a 15-year NBA veteran, consideration to element and total perspective (he’s mentioned he “loves” gamers who have “a little bit s— to them”) all are interesting traits for the Lakers. His media savvy doesn’t harm, both, in a high-profile gig the place the flawed reply in a press convention will go viral and lead social media and sports activities discuss exhibits for days.
GO DEEPER
The Pulse: The Lakers’ unbelievable gamble
If the Lakers rent Redick, it might be a decade-defining guess on his potential. It additionally could be a departure from the franchise’s latest teaching selections. The lineage is filled with hires with notable ties to the franchise, from former gamers like Byron Scott and Luke Walton, to former assistants like Ham.
In the meantime, the exceptions — Mike Brown, Mike D’Antoni and Vogel — had been skilled and achieved coaches. All three had been well-regarded leaguewide and went on to be employed elsewhere after being fired by the Lakers. Additionally they had been a head coach for a minimum of 5 seasons and made a minimum of one convention finals look. D’Antoni was introduced in partly due to his relationship with Steve Nash, whom the Lakers acquired forward of the 2012-13 season.
Redick would enter the NBA teaching ranks inexperienced — he hasn’t coached above the youth stage — and with none hyperlinks to the Lakers franchise as a former participant or coach. This brings us to the elephant within the room: It’s not possible to discern how a lot his skilled relationship with James is factoring into the Lakers’ calculus. Klutch Sports activities CEO and James’ agent Wealthy Paul advised The Athletic that James is just not concerned within the teaching search and hasn’t backed Redick as his most well-liked candidate.
Wealthy Paul: “LeBron James and JJ Redick do a podcast collectively, that doesn’t imply he desires Redick as the pinnacle coach.”
— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) Might 20, 2024
On the similar time, the chemistry between the 2, who co-host the Thoughts The Recreation podcast, has been palpable, particularly when analyzing basketball technique and philosophy. It’s onerous to imagine the Lakers, in the event that they selected Redick, wouldn’t a minimum of run the selection by their franchise participant. At a minimal, the Lakers must mission the kind of attributes James, who has a $51.4 million participant choice for subsequent season, would need in a brand new rent. His enter stays invaluable, particularly together with his capability to check free company this summer time.
Redick’s major competitors all through the method, a minimum of over the previous couple of weeks, has been James Borrego. The New Orleans Pelicans affiliate coach and former Charlotte Hornets head man met with Lakers stakeholders final week on the group’s observe facility and was spectacular throughout his conferences, league and group sources mentioned. Davis and Borrego briefly overlapped in New Orleans earlier than Davis’ rookie season, and the 2 have maintained a strong rapport. Each the Lakers and Paul acknowledge that the Lakers ought to make this rent with Davis in thoughts greater than James, which is a part of the explanation why Borrego has been so strongly thought-about.
That additionally speaks to a bigger level: This isn’t precisely a sought-after teaching pool. Probably the most achieved choice was Mike Budenholzer, however he shared too many similarities with Ham. He additionally agreed to phrases together with his hometown Phoenix Suns. The Lakers’ pipe dream of hiring James’ former coach Tyronn Lue by no means materialized; he’s now the Los Angeles Clippers’ coach for the foreseeable future after signing a contract extension.
Borrego and Golden State Warriors assistant coach Kenny Atkinson are well-regarded assistants, however have sub-.500 data as head coaches and reportedly misplaced their respective locker rooms of their ultimate seasons. There could be some measure of danger in elevating any of Boston Celtics assistant Sam Cassell, Denver Nuggets assistant David Adelman, Minnesota Timberwolves assistant Micah Nori or Miami Warmth assistant Chris Quinn to a place they’ve by no means held, particularly in a locker room that has been difficult to command the previous couple of seasons.
Which isn’t to say hiring Redick is fail-proof. His shortcomings are apparent; he’s by no means coached earlier than. Even Steve Kerr, a well-liked analog for Redick, a minimum of had basic supervisor expertise along with his broadcasting and enjoying resume earlier than taking on the Warriors’ job in the summertime of 2014. Redick is a thriller field — however one the Lakers seem intrigued by and able to open.
GO DEEPER
Timeline of Lakers’ coaches over previous 12 seasons
There are nonetheless a number of unanswered questions concerning the Lakers and Redick. The Lakers haven’t made an official determination but, and they look like in no rush to take action. Redick is serving as a colour commentator for ABC for the NBA Finals, which start Thursday in Boston. There’s a sense across the league that Redick, if employed, must be a part of the Lakers after the finals conclude. A fast ramp-up earlier than the NBA Draft isn’t supreme, nevertheless it seems to be the most definitely end result if Redick is certainly the selection.
Moreover, there’s the matter of Redick’s teaching workers. Assistant teaching candidates will embody Borrego, Cassell, former Laker Rajon Rondo, former Laker and present Dallas Mavericks assistant Jared Dudley and former head coach and assistant Scott Brooks, in accordance with league sources. If the Lakers rent Redick, they’d favor to have Borrego and Cassell on Redick’s workers as prime assistants, in accordance with these sources. The Los Angeles Occasions was first to report the assistant teaching candidate names.
Hiring Redick comes with vital danger given his inexperience. On paper, he has lots of the bona fides of a strong teaching prospect. However it’s troublesome to foretell how a lot of that may translate from Day 1 in a win-now setting for the league’s marquee franchise and basketball’s most-scrutinized teaching seat.
Successful early in a training tenure doesn’t essentially translate to job safety in Los Angeles. Vogel gained a championship in his first season and was fired after his third season. Ham led the Lakers to the Western Convention finals as a first-year head coach and was let go after his second season. Even when Redick crushes his teaching debut, the stress and scrutiny carry over year-to-year. There may be hardly ever time to exhale because the Lakers’ head coach.
Redick is conscious of the challenges that include each the Lakers’ place and being a first-time NBA head coach, however he’s prepared to embrace them and is getting ready accordingly, in accordance with league sources. That proactive strategy, mixed together with his potential and persona, is why he’s the Lakers’ front-runner.
(High picture: Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE through Getty Pictures)
