With the Los Angeles Lakers officially deciding to hire a first-time head coach in JJ Redick, he is looking to bring a new approach to this historic franchise.
While this particular coaching search featured some curveballs, general manager Rob Pelinka made it a priority to get Redick after a failed pursuit of UConn head coach Dan Hurley. Now, Redick is expected to bring a more analytical approach to this Lakers team, focusing on player development.
Even though Redick has no previous experience, he did make a ton of connections during his 15-year playing career.
One of those connections was Jaxson Hayes, who played with Redick during his stint with the New Orleans Pelicans. As he neared the end of his career, Redick took pride in helping younger players and particularly helped Hayes with his transition into the NBA.
This summer, Hayes had a player option for the 2024-25 season and ultimately decided to pick it up to return to the Lakers. However, before his decision, Hayes had an interview where he stated that he is excited to hopefully play for Redick, via WCPO 9:
“It was good, we kind of chatted and caught back up. We were very close friends my rookie year and he was my vet. So, I mean, we have a very close connection, very tight knit connection in like a little gang of guys my rookie year that we all would hangout all the time. But, it’s crazy, I’m just really excited to hopefully get to work with him and I just can’t wait.”
Barring a trade, Hayes gets a new start with Redick as his new head coach. Under Darvin Ham, the former lottery pick played spot minutes and provided much-needed energy when L.A. was dragging their feet. But with this new power dynamic, Hayes admits that it is weird for Redick to now be his coach and not a teammate:
“It’s weird, I’m not going to lie, it’s definitely a little weird because we played together, three years ago. Yeah, three years ago now and now he is my head coach, so it’s definitely a little weird, but it’s awesome just having a close friend like that as your head coach.”
It will be interesting to see if L.A.’s new head coach can find a way to bring more production out of his backup center this upcoming season, if Hayes is even on the roster.
JJ Redick can’t wait to coach Austin Reaves on Lakers
There is a lot to look forward to for JJ Redick as he is inheriting a roster with some notable players on it. But one player that he cannot wait to coach next season is Austin Reaves.
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