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J.J. Redick was a better hire for the Hornets than the Lakers.
I opined a while ago that the Charlotte Hornets should hire the former Duke star, NBA veteran and recent broadcaster. Instead, Charlotte hired Charles Lee off the staff of the world champion Boston Celtics, which certainly isn’t a bad hire.
Lee is one of those coaches who wasn’t much of a player but concentrated on a coaching career after he was done lacing them up. Dean Smith and Bobby Knight in days of yore, and currently Joe Mazzulla are proof of taking that path.
Redick would have come to Charlotte without coaching experience, but his proximity to the Queen City and the state plus tepid pressure to win would have helped him through a typical adjustment period for a new coach.
With the Lakers, it is a completely different story. He is the 29th head coach of the storied franchise but the seventh since Phil Jackson led the 17-time NBA champions to five titles. Since then, they have earned one NBA crown, and that was 2020 in the COVID bubble of Florida, which needs to come with a big asterisk.
Since Jackson left, the Lakers have had Mike Brown for one season, Bernie Bickerstaff as an interim head coach, Mike D’Antoni for three seasons, Byron Scott for two, Luke Walton for three years, Frank Vogel for three (including that COVID title) and Darvin Ham for this past season before being fired after the Lakers were bounced from the playoffs in five games by defending NBA champion Denver.
All that adds up to a short leash for Redick, who is looking to hire some up-and-coming assistants like Sam Cassell of the Celtics, former Lakers Rajon Rondo and Jared Dudley and maybe even an ex-head coach. That’s a lot of basketball brain power, but also could be some guys angling for the head job if Redick gets off to a bad start and the wealthy ownership grows impatient.
J.J.’s lack of coaching experience isn’t a killer, since he is a basketball lifer and knows the game from his 19 years as a college and pro player and as a podcaster and broadcaster since hanging up his sneaks.
The LA job may just be too big for him. How could it not be for a pro basketball team worth $7.34 billion, third most in the NBA behind the Warriors and the Knicks, but with a golden past and outlandish expectations?
Featured image via Associated Press/Phelan M. Ebenhack
Art Chansky is a veteran journalist who has written ten books, including best-sellers “Game Changers,” “Blue Bloods,” and “The Dean’s List.” He has contributed to WCHL for decades, having made his first appearance as a student in 1971. His “Sports Notebook” commentary airs daily on the 97.9 The Hill WCHL and his “Art’s Angle” opinion column runs weekly on Chapelboro.Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.
