"Kinda like the start of a joke" - HOF coach George Karl trolls reports of "hated Dookie" JJ Redick likely taking over Lakers
Former NBA sharpshooter JJ Redick is reportedly the prohibitive favorite to be named the LA Lakers' next coach. However, according to legendary coach George Karl, his frontrunner status is laughable.
While Redick, now an ESPN commentator and renowned podcaster, is one of the league's most revered basketball minds, he has no NBA coaching experience. Nonetheless, according to a Tuesday report from The Athletic's Shams Charania, LA is "zeroing in on" hiring him over a field of more experienced candidates.
JJ Redick reportedly has the edge over the Lakers' other top target, New Orleans Pelicans assistant coach James Borrego. However, Charania added that the organization may wait until the end of Redick's upcoming NBA Finals coverage to make his hiring official.
Following the report, Karl weighed in on X/Twitter, citing his difficulty taking the news seriously. He highlighted Redick's basketball journey from being nationally hated during his four-year college basketball career at Duke University to becoming a universally beloved NBA figure.
The 73-year-old also touched on the unlikeliness of an inexperienced coach being offered a head coaching position with one of the league's premier franchises.
"It’s kinda like the start of a joke," Karl said. "One of the most hated Dookies ever, with zero coaching experience, is offered the ultimate head coaching position with the LA Lakers."
Karl, who ranks sixth on the league's all-time winningest coaches list (1,175-824), worked his way up to his first NBA head coaching opportunity.
He was an assistant coach with the Spurs from 1978 to 1980. He also served as the head coach of the now-disbanded Continental Basketball Association's Montana Golden Nuggets from 1980 to 1983. After that, he returned to the NBA as the Cleveland Cavaliers' director of player acquisition before being promoted to head coach in 1984.
So, Karl's career pathway likely factored into his apparent belief that JJ Redick is undeserving of a head coaching gig.
While Redick has no coaching experience, Borrego has an extensive NBA coaching resume dating back to 2003. He has been an assistant coach with the San Antonio Spurs, Orlando Magic and New Orleans, winning two championships (2005 and 2007) under legendary Spurs coach Gregg Popovich.
Borrego also gained experience as a head coach with the Charlotte Hornets from 2018 to 2022. So, the Lakers could be taking a risk by opting for Redick over him. However, according to the Los Angeles Times' Dan Woike, the franchise "covets" Borrego as a potential assistant next to Redick if he is ultimately hired.
Thus, LA could end up landing both of its reported top coaching targets.
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Before trolling LA's potential JJ Redick coaching hire, George Karl reissued apology to Lakers fans
George Karl trolling the Lakers for targeting JJ Redick to be their next coach isn't the first time he's taken jabs at LA this season.
The former Coach of the Year has long been critical of the Lakers, seemingly reveling in their shortcomings. That includes during their recent 4-1 first-round playoff series loss to the Denver Nuggets. Moreover, after their elimination, he questioned LA superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis' superstar status.
Karl apologized to the Lakers' fanbase on X last month, saying he "let [his] sports hate go too far." Shortly before calling out LA's pursuit of Redick on Tuesday, he retweeted the same apology, expressing a desire to refrain from making more negative comments.
"I’ll just retweet this note instead of sharing other feelings about the Lakers' new HC hire," Karl said.
However, Karl seemingly couldn't hold back from continuing his feud with Lakers fans, as evidenced by his follow-up critique of LA three hours later.
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