The Los Angeles Lakers coaching search is ramping up as the team has begun making formal interview requests of a number of candidates this week at the NBA Draft Combine. While there are a handful of assistants around the league that figure to get calls from the Lakers, three names have jumped to the top of the list for L.A., according to Shams Charania.
Former Hornets coach James Borrego, Celtics assistant coach Sam Cassell, and ESPN analyst and podcast host JJ Redick are the presumptive favorites going into the interview process, which Adrian Wojnarowski noted would be “thorough.” Woj has also stated that the Lakers are “digging deep” on Redick, and it seems he has a very strong chance at landing the gig. It certainly doesn’t hurt his chances that he hosts a podcast with LeBron James, but he’s also been a candidate in Charlotte and the Lakers will have to make this hire with the post-LeBron era in mind, as James is likely not going to play for too many more years.
According to Charania, aiding in the Lakers coaching search is former Duke and USA Basketball head coach Mike Krzyzewski, who rather famously coached Redick for four years in college.
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It certainly seems like all of this is lining up for Redick to get the job. Even if Coach K is just an “unofficial resource,” one would have to think he’s going to be offering his voice of support for his former pupil. We’ll find out in the coming weeks if that indeed is the case (and ESPN has to find yet another new game analyst), or if someone else stands out in the process and is able to leap to the top spot on the Lakers wishlist.