Report: J.J. Redick was warned it’d be ‘bad idea’ to take Lakers job

Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Los Angeles Lakers head coach J.J. Redick had people close to him tell him it would be a bad idea to take the Lakers job this offseason, according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.

“From when Redick first talked about the position with [Rob] Pelinka during the NBA draft combine in May, to officially becoming a Lakers candidate along with New Orleans assistant James Borrego and UConn (University of Connecticut) coach Dan Hurley, several people close to Redick told him it would be a bad idea to take it, sources told ESPN,” McMenamin wrote.

“You’re already doing so well in media, they said. Just wait and other opportunities will arise, he heard. Hey, someone is going to have to replace Gregg Popovich in San Antonio at some point, you could be the guy to coach Victor Wembanyama, they reasoned. Have you paid attention to the Lakers lately? They’re a circus, was the refrain.”

The Lakers have not been the best spot for coaches to land in recent seasons, as they’ve had Mike Brown, Bernie Bickerstaff, Mike D’Antoni, Byron Scott, Luke Walton, Frank Vogel and Darvin Ham all as coaches since Phil Jackson’s last season with the franchise (the 2010-11 campaign).

Ham held the position for the last two seasons, but he was let go despite the Lakers making back-to-back playoff appearances, including a trip to the Western Conference Finals in the 2022-23 season.

Even though Redick had people close to him trying to dissuade him from taking the job, the new Lakers head coach shared that it was the desire to compete that ultimately led him to Los Angeles.

“I think in response to the people who say, ‘You had such a good thing going on,’ they were correct,” Redick said. “I enjoyed three years of retirement. I really did. The things that I was able to do in media have not been lost on me … and all the stuff that we did in the podcast space. I’m very proud of it.

“There’s a competitive itch that I have every single day of my life. And no matter how many swings I took, that was not getting satisfied. And so, I felt a real calling in terms of the competitive side.”

This is certainly a new challenge for Redick, as he’s never he held a coaching position at the NBA level.

Still, Redick did have a lengthy NBA career where he became one of the best 3-point shooters in the league.

Hopefully for the Lakers, that experience will help him in his first season leading the franchise.

Los Angeles is looking to make it back to the NBA Finals for the first time since it won the title in the 2019-20 season. With LeBron James and Anthony Davis still on the roster, there is an expectation that the Lakers will be able to be one of the best teams in the Western Conference.

Redick and the Lakers open up the 2024-25 regular season on Oct. 22 against the Minnesota Timberwolves.