After a surprise pursuit of back-to-back National Championship head coach Dan Hurley, the Los Angeles Lakers were unfortunately turned down and are now back at square one in their coaching search. With the NBA Draft almost two weeks away, L.A. is still without a coach but perhaps they could circle back to ESPN color commentator JJ Redick.
But that is far from a given as Redick may not want this position after originally being viewed as a runner-up and conversely, the Lakers may have simply moved off of him to pursue other candidates. While one cannot blame general manager Rob Pelinka and governor Jeanie Buss for making the push for Hurley, it’s still logical for Redick to hold it against them if he wants, especially since he already has a lucrative media job.
However, after Hurley announced his decision, it looks like Redick is back at the top as the betting favorite to become L.A.’s next head coach:
With Dan Hurley turning down the Lakers, new odds surfaced for LA gig. No surprise who is the favorite: JJ Redick 1/5 via @BetOnline_ag (don’t know why Ty Lue is on the list)
Also, James Borrego clear fav for Cavs job: 1/1 (even though he’s right behind Redick for LA gig) pic.twitter.com/IreyO62Tbn
— Ryan Ward (@RyanWardLA) June 11, 2024
Given how little time is left to find a new coach, it would make sense for Pelinka to circle back to Redick as well as James Borrego, who they interviewed twice already. There could be another candidate or two that enters the mix though as the Lakers look to expand their search a little bit more.
Nonetheless, this coaching search has not been ideal with Pelinka and Buss unable to close the deal on their top candidate and none of the other ones jumping out as a potential home run hire. This is another coaching search that left Pelinka’s process to finding a new face to be questioned, but he has to figure something out sooner rather than later if the Lakers want to get back to contender status.
JJ Redick remains viable candidate in coaching search
During the Lakers’ pursuit of Dan Hurley, there was a mixed bag of reporting and some reporters questioned if UConn’s championship head coach was the No. 1 option all along. As Hurley was mulling his decision to stay or leave, some were not dismissing JJ Redick as a candidate should Hurley decide to stay in Connecticut.
Now, the Lakers have to circle back around to their candidate pool and Redick remains a viable candidate in this coaching search that has been a roller coaster.
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