Lakers Agree To Hire Podcaster JJ Redick As Next Head Coach, And Here's Why It's A Terrible Idea
Best Celtics offseason ever? The pick is in … and the Los Angeles Lakers are reportedly hiring podcaster, former player and LeBron James' friend, J.J. Redick, as their next head coach.
Simply put, the hire is all kinds of bad … here are some quick reasons why:
DENVER, COLORADO - DECEMBER 25: Former NBA player JJ Redick works for ESPN at Ball Arena on December 25, 2023 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images)
REASON No. 1: J.J. Redick has no prior basketball coaching experience.
REASON No. 2: The Lakers are in ‘win-now’ mode and seemingly starting from scratch under a new coach learning on the job.
REASON No. 3: LA desperately needs another new star player, and Redick, as a coach, offers nothing at the negotiation table.
You package that all together, and you've got the next head coach of the Lakers.
ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski broke the news on Thursday, ending the Lakers' messy coaching saga this offseason after going through names like James Borrego, Kenny Atkinson and the great Dan Hurley, who rejected LA's low-ball offer.
According to Woj, Lakers president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka was fascinated by Redick's connection with players and Redick's "basketball IQ."
LISTEN: OUTKICK's ALEJANDRO AVILA JOINS WLNI TO CHAT JJ REDICK
Los Angeles, California March 2, 2024-Lakers general manger Rob Pelinka, left, chats with head coach Marvin Ham before a game with the Nuggets at Crypto.com Arena. (Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Currently, Redick's coaching pedigree (there is none) leaves much to the imagination.
Questions loom as Redick currently lacks any identity as a defensive or offensive threat from an X's and O's standpoint. He reportedly agreed to a four-year deal. The Athletic reported that Reddick is expected to make $8 million per year.
Lakers Pick JJ Redick To Lead Franchise, And Why It's A Terrible Idea
The podcaster's rise to a head-coaching role this offseason was a confusing (even scandalous) storyline for the prestigious franchise.
In March, Redick started a basketball podcast with Lakers star LeBron James, giving early indications of Redick's connection to the Lakers HC job. LA canned former head coach Darvin Ham after two seasons with the team and became the first Lakers coach to be fired after making the postseason. After Ham's firing, people picked up on the breadcrumbs LeBron and Redick left in their ‘behind closed doors’ plan for the Lakers coaching job; at last proving that when you're buddies with LeBron, all kinds of miraculous things are possible, such as landing a high-profile coaching job without any experience.
News of Dan Hurley (the best HC contender of the bunch) being vetted by LA pumped hopes into Lakers fans amid the coaching search, and team owner Jeanie Buss, expected to turn around a flailing franchise, appeared to actually have a plan in place by considering a real ‘program builder’ of a coach.
Jeanie Buss, owner of the LA Lakers. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Weeks later, the Lakers give top command to Redick, a 15-year NBA vet who, on his worst days, can seem like a pretentious, pretty glib figure around the game. In recent weeks, Redick worked as ABC's color commentator for the NBA Finals alongside Doris Burke and Mike Breen, to mixed reception. Throughout the coaching rumors, the praise or criticism around Redick mostly centered on his multi-media presence because that is his greatest strength as a media figure, not generally viewed as a figure of the modern NBA.
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - NOVEMBER 27: LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers shoots the ball over JJ Redick #4 of the New Orleans Pelicans at Smoothie King Center on November 27, 2019 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
READ: Get Ready To Hit 'Mute': LeBron Launches Podcast With JJ Redick
Not everyone saw Redick's connection to LeBron via their podcast as a positive for the organization, viewing it as a nepotism play.
Redick's Hire Shows No Stable Plan For The Future of The Lakers
Dysfunctional rotations built around LeBron and fellow Lakers star Anthony Davis have haunted the Lakers since winning the championship in the shortened 2020 season. For many of those Lakers roster, LeBron worked as the architect, usurping his former coaches' control.
Redick's addition stirs debate over whether players will respect the coach, given how much favor he's built with the organization based on his relationship with James.
Can Redick be the guy to reel in James, the most powerful figure inside the Lakers franchise?
The Lakers are cash-poor and currently have a plan for the future based around LeBron, who's facing a season or two until he retires (currently at age 40).
After LeBron's tether runs out, it's uncertain where this franchise will find its next star or solution to turn around its losing basketball fortunes.
Building a roster that still needs shooting and ample size on the front court, the Lakers' next item on their to-do list is to draft the undersized and underwhelming Bronny James, seen as a move to coax LeBron into staying next season for the Lakers.
Winning coaches like Joe Mazzulla, Michael Malone, and Chris Finch all have a grasp of how to build successful rotations. Redick, a guy looking at the game from the outside in, enters the ring to take on these heads of basketball.
The Lakers' plans are all built around LeBron, set up to crumble without him, though their decay already looks to be in progress.
Meanwhile, the Celtics prepare to celebrate their league-leading 18th championship, led by smart executives and a young coach with plenty of coaching in his pedigree.
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