NBA insider gives insight on timeline of JJ Redick's potential announcement as Lakers head coachÂ
The JJ Redick to Lakers rumors have picked up steam over the past few weeks. According to NBA insider Shams Charania, Redick and the Lakers had "extended conversations" last week as the franchise conducted coaching interviews for multiple candidates. Charania said that he believes Redick to be a frontrunner for the job.
Meanwhile, insider Brian Windhorst said Redick is a "strong candidate" in a conversation on the Dan Patrick Show. He revealed that the Lakers could announce Redick as the next head coach after the 2024 NBA Finals. Redick, an ESPN broadcaster, is calling games next to Mike Breen and Doris Burke, considered the company's 'A-team,' who will also cover the finals.
Windhorst said calling the finals will make Redick's work difficult if he's announced as any of his interested suitor's head coach before or during the series. The Cavaliers and Washington Wizards are the other teams in the market with a head coaching vacancy, along with the Lakers.
Redick was reportedly linked to the Charlotte Hornets job, which ultimately went to Celtics assistant coach Charles Lee. There are no reported links between him and the Cavaliers or Wizards.
JJ Redick's strongest links have been with the LA Lakers for their HC vacancy, but other candidates like James Borrego, Micah Nori, David Adelman and Sam Cassell are also in the running.
Redick appears to be the only one with zero coaching experience in the NBA, as the other candidates have been top assistant coaches across the league. Meanwhile, Borrego coached the Hornets for four seasons between 2018 and 2022. and the Orlando Magic in 2014-15 as an interim coach for 30 games.
Hiring JJ Redick is going to be a big hit or miss for LA Lakers
One of the LA Lakers' priorities this summer in their head coaching search is acquiring someone well-versed with Xs and Os. Some of the top teams in the West have been successful because of coaches who are excellent strategically, and that probably is what makes the Lakers covet JJ Redick.
Through his podcasts and broadcasting, Redick has displayed his familiarity with being sound technically and understanding the needs of today's NBA. However, there's little to no evidence that Redick will be good in other areas, like leading a locker room with stars of LeBron James and Anthony Davis' caliber.
Man management is just as crucial as being a tactical genius to bag an NBA coaching job. Several experienced coaches have also struggled with keeping the locker rooms together and often lost the trust and respect of their players, leading to their firing.
The Lakers experienced that with Frank Vogel and Darvin Ham in the LeBron James-Anthony Davis era. LA's experience with first-time head coaches like Luke Walton and Ham hasn't been as good. So, if the Lakers are keen on JJ Redick, they will have to think long and hard about this decision, especially with their window of winning another championship closing.