JJ Redick was gentleman’s swept out of the first round during his first season as an NBA head coach, but the leash is still apparently a good amount longer for him.
Jovan Buha and Sam Amick of The Athletic reported this week on the Los Angeles Lakers head coach Redick’s status in L.A. Buha and Amick say that Redick’s job is “safe” despite the team’s early playoff exit. Additionally, the Lakers are said to be “optimistic” about Redick’s future with the franchise.
Redick, still only 40 years old, was hired by the Lakers last June despite having no previous coaching experience (other than serving as a volunteer head coach of the fourth-grade boys’ team that his son played for). The 15-year NBA veteran Redick did manage to lead the Lakers to a 50-win season, which was only their second of the last decade. But Redick was boosted by the team’s addition of generational star Luka Doncic in February and was a modest 28-19 prior to the Doncic trade.
During the playoffs, the No. 3 seed Lakers lost in five games to the No. 6 seed Minnesota Timberwolves. Redick’s inexperience was apparent over the course of that series, including with a widely-criticized decision that he made in a narrow Game 4 loss.
Additionally, Redick has since been facing accusations of immaturity, which he himself sparked by storming out of a press conference before Game 5. Following the Lakers’ playoff exit, Redick was also slammed for supposed hypocrisy and childish behavior.
That said, there were signs even before he was hired that Redick was LeBron James’ hand-picked choice for head coach. While the Lakers will always be a win-now, championship-or-bust job, the team will apparently be giving Redick some more time to grown into his position.
