As the Los Angeles Lakers embark on yet another high-profile coaching search — their fourth in eight years — one former high-profile candidate for the job is advising owner Jeanie Buss and the rest of team’s front office in the decision, according to a new report from The Athletic. That would be Hall of Fame former Duke head coach Mike “Coach K” Krzyzewski.
Krzyzewski, who Buss’s late father Jerry Buss famously attempted to lure from Duke to the Lakers nearly 20 years ago, “has become a respected unofficial resource” for the Lakers due to his “deep knowledge” of several top coaching candidates, including former Blue Devils star J.J. Redick, The Athletic reported. Krzyzewski retired from coaching in 2022, ending a 42-year run at Duke that included five NCAA men’s basketball national titles.
Redick, a current NBA television analyst and longtime podcast host who retired after a 15-year NBA playing career in 2021, has been constantly linked to the Lakers’ job opening since the team fired Darvin Ham after its first-round playoff elimination at the hands of the Denver Nuggets. Notably, Redick recently started a deep-dive basketball podcast, “Mind The Game,” with Lakers superstar LeBron James.
The 39-year-old Redick has publicly expressed an interest in joining an NBA team in a coaching capacity, and is reportedly “slightly ahead of the field” of current Lakers coach candidates, an advantage that could grow with the influence of Krzyzewski, his college coach at Duke. Redick has no coaching experience beyond his sons’ youth basketball teams. However, he has reportedly interviewed for multiple other NBA head coach roles over the past two seasons.
But longtime NBA assistant coach Sam Cassell, who currently works for the Boston Celtics, is also a leading candidate for the job, according to The Athletic. So is James Borrego, the former Charlotte Hornets head coach who also spent several years as an assistant coach under Gregg Popovich with the San Antonio Spurs and is currently the New Orleans Pelicans’ associate head coach.
Borrego and Cassell are currently co-favorites on betting markets to be the next Lakers head coach at +300. Redick has the next-shortest odds at +340.
[Related: Los Angeles Lakers next head coach odds: Borrego, Cassell, Redick favorites]
Other coaches connected to the Lakers include current LA Clippers coach Tyronn Lue, current Golden State Warriors assistant and former Brooklyn…
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