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The Los Angeles Lakers have agreed to a take care of former NBA participant and present ESPN NBA analyst JJ Redick to make him the workforce’s new coach.
Per a number of stories, Redick agreed to a four-year deal this morning with the Lakers and might be working to encompass himself with skilled assistants to spherical out his workers.
Redick has by no means coached within the NBA and retired in 2021 after enjoying 15 seasons within the NBA with six groups. He started serving as an NBA analyst for ESPN shortly after his retirement and was the lead analyst for the community’s telecast of the 2024 NBA Finals on ABC.
ESPN Sources: JJ Redick has agreed on a four-year contract to turn into the subsequent coach of the Los Angeles Lakers. Rob Pelinka provided job this morning and Redick’s began engaged on a workers to encompass himself with expertise. pic.twitter.com/G66eVFRALp
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 20, 2024
Fast story on the Lakers teaching search ending the place lots of people believed it began https://t.co/0zEcR5qpl2 https://t.co/ymebSIU771
— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) June 20, 2024
Redick and Lakers star LeBron James host a podcast known as “Thoughts the Sport,” which is already wildly widespread as listeners typically emerge impressed by the duo’s basketball acumen and high-level dialogue of techniques and motivation.
Now they are going to work collectively for the Lakers, with Redick main a roster headlined by James, who’s six months youthful than Redick.
The Lakers wanted a coach after parting methods with Darvin Ham in early Could after he spent two seasons on the job. He was 90-74 in that span with two playoff berths, a run to the 2023 Western Convention Finals and a championship within the inaugural In-Season Event.
The Lakers skilled a disappointing 47-35 marketing campaign in 2023-24 that ended with a loss to the Denver Nuggets within the first spherical of the playoffs in 5 video games.
Nearer have a look at Redick: The 39-year-old Redick is a unprecedented selection by the Lakers, who employed a 15-year veteran with completely no teaching expertise to guide a franchise with 17 NBA titles, one of many greatest model names in world sports activities — and James, the highest scorer in league historical past.
Redick’s teaching expertise is proscribed to his youngsters’s youth groups, however he has been across the sport his complete life. He’s the main scorer within the historical past of Duke, the place he performed 4 seasons beneath Mike Krzyzewski.
And although Redick is an unorthodox selection, his unlikely ascent shouldn’t be with out some precedent in Lakers lore and up to date NBA historical past.
Pat Riley was a broadcaster for the Lakers in November 1979 when Paul Westhead took over as their coach after Jack McKinney almost died in a bicycle accident. Westhead employed Riley as an assistant with out teaching expertise, and Riley turned the Lakers’ coach in late 1981 after Westhead clashed with Magic Johnson.
Riley promptly led the Lakers to 4 championships within the Nineteen Eighties to start his unbelievable profession as a coach and government.
Outlook for Lakers: Los Angeles may have the No. 17 decide within the 2024 Draft to work with, a variety that Redick and his workers will certainly have enter on. The Lakers even have the No. 55 decide within the second spherical and might be wanting so as to add youth to a roster that options James (who was the oldest participant within the league final season).
The Lakers’ difficulties in 2024-25 stung as a result of James and Anthony Davis had been largely wholesome all yr lengthy, with each superstars enjoying extra video games than they’d managed in an NBA season since 2017-18 — 76 for Davis and 71 for James, the main scorer in NBA historical past. D’Angelo Russell additionally had a robust common season, setting the franchise document for 3-pointers.
Accidents, inconsistent play and a mediocre protection paved the way in which for a troublesome center of the season. The Lakers went 3-10 in the course of the vacation interval instantly after the In-Season Event.
The Lakers had been within the Play-In Event each seasons beneath Ham and, whereas he finally led them to the postseason each instances, the West Finals run in 2022-23 raised the stakes significantly for L.A. this season.
James and Davis each maintain participant choices this summer time, which should be exercised by June 29. General, the Lakers have 11 gamers who’re potential free brokers this summer time. James, Davis and the Lakers have did not win a playoff spherical in three of their 4 seasons since successful the 2020 championship within the Florida bubble.
The Lakers employed Ham after firing Frank Vogel, who had been fired precisely 18 months after he received the 2020 NBA title. Vogel changed Luke Walton after one other lengthy teaching search through which the Lakers had been extensively reported to have wished Tyronn Lue, just for a deal to crumble over points with cash and management.
Info from The Related Press was used on this report.