The Los Angeles Lakers are in the market for a head coach after firing Darvin Ham earlier this month. The front office has reportedly held interviews with three potential candidates, with plans to interview three more. Jovan Buha and Shams Charania of The Athletic reported:
The Lakers have held formal meetings with JJ Redick, New Orleans Pelicans associate head coach James Borrego and Boston Celtics assistant coach Sam Cassell over the past several days, according to those sources. Team officials plan to meet with Denver Nuggets assistant coach David Adelman, Minnesota Timberwolves assistant Micah Nori and Miami Heat assistant Chris Quinn as they do their due diligence on the candidate pool. [h/t The Athletic]
Despite having no previous coaching experience, JJ Redick is believed to be a strong candidate for the job. Meanwhile, James Borrego is the only candidate with previous head coaching experience. He spent 30 games as the interim head coach of the Orlando Magic in 2015 and had a four-year stint leading the Charlotte Hornets from 2018-2022. He has a 148-183 career record, however, he has not had the opportunity to coach talent at the level of Anthony Davis and LeBron James.
LeBron James is reportedly not involved in the Los Angeles Lakers coaching search
LeBron James’ co-host on the Mind the Game podcast, JJ Redick, is among the candidates in contention to be the next head of the Los Angeles Lakers. Despite the link between the two, the NBA’s all-time leading scorer is reportedly not involved in the coaching search.
Speaking on Run It Back, Shams Charania of The Athletic stated:
I’m told LeBron James is not involved in the Lakers head coaching search. LeBron James has made it clear this is the organization’s decision. He’s had no conversations with the Lakers about JJ Redick, his podcast partner. He’s had no conversations with JJ about that position as well.
I did speak with Rich Paul this morning. He said that LeBron James and JJ Redick, they do a podcast together. That does not mean that he wants JJ Redick as his head coach, but he’s leaving it up to the organization.
Charania noted that Anthony Davis may have a larger role in the Lakers coaching search than LeBron. The four-time NBA MVP holds a $51.4 million player option for the 2024-25 season. While he may opt out of the deal, he is expected to remain in Los Angeles. James averaged 25.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, 8.3 assists, 1.3 steals and 0.5 blocks per game in his 21st season. He shot 54.0% from the field, 41.0% from three-point range and 75.0% from the free-throw line.
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