Former NBA player and current ESPN analyst J.J. Redick was not happy with the Los Angeles Lakers’ decision to allow former head coach Phil Jakcson to advise the team in its coaching search ahead of the 2022-23 season.
“The idea that they’re going to bring in Phil Jackson to help with the coaching search, given his record as an executive in New York, and with the hires he made – again it’s a pattern of behavior,” Redick said. “It fits in their pattern of behavior. Other teams are not going to fall susceptible to that.”
It’s hard to argue with Redick’s comments, as Jackson does not have a proven track record outside of being a championship-winning coach himself.
During Jackson’s time as an executive for the New York Knicks, he hired Derek Fisher and Jeff Hornacek, neither of whom panned out with the team.
The Lakers need to make the right hire for their next head coach, as the team has to maximize LeBron James and Anthony Davis next season. James is only getting older, and his days of single-handedly carrying a team to the playoffs may be behind him.
The Lakers missed the playoffs in the 2021-22 season under Frank Vogel, and he was promptly let go following the conclusion of the regular season.
While Vogel did win a title in Los Angeles, he was unable to get the best out of Russell Westbrook in the 2021-22 campaign. That severely limited the Lakers’ ceiling, and the team can’t afford to make the same mistake again.
Jackson may have a ton of pedigree as a head coach in the NBA, but the team needs much more than just his opinion to find the coach to get this team back on track next season.
