The Los Angeles Lakers have officially named their next head coach, and he’s a familiar face for L.A. basketball fans.
JJ Redick will take the reins of one of the league’s most storied franchises for the 2024-25 season, according to Adrian Wojnarowski, ESPN newsbreaker and Redick’s now-former colleague.
Redick has agreed to a four-year deal to coach the Lakers, Woj reports, adding that the former NBA 3-point specialist and college basketball star is in the process of hiring a staff with experienced assistant coaches.
Redick has never coached in the NBA before, having just retired in 2021 after playing 15 seasons in the league and spending his time since working on podcasts and behind the microphone as part of ESPN’s NBA commentary and gamecast team.
He was part of ESPN’s top broadcast team that just covered the NBA Finals matchup between the Dallas Mavericks and the eventual champions the Boston Celtics, the Lakers’ most loathed rival.
Redick has made a name for himself as one of the up-and-coming NBA media voices, with multiple successful podcasts, including one he co-hosts with LeBron James — his new star player and the team’s most influential contributor.
Angelenos may remember Redick from his four seasons as a member of the Los Angeles Clippers, in which he averaged nearly 16 points per game as one of the game’s most lethal 3-point shooters.
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New Lakers coach JJ Redick as a member of the Los Angeles Clippers on April 30, 2017. (Getty Images) -
JJ Redick as a member of the Philadelphia 76ers shown on April 6, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Getty Images) -
JJ Redick as a member of the Duke Blue Devils during the Atlantic Coast Conference Men’s Basketball Tournament on March 12, 2006 (Getty Images) -
JJ Redick and his Duke teammates hold a trophy after defeating the Memphis Tigers in the Preseason NIT Tournament game at Madison Square Garden on November 25, 2005 in New York City. (Getty Images)
Drafted out of Duke in 2006, Redick had a decorated college career, having been named a two-time All-American and the 2005-06 Associated Press Player of the Year.
Redick will take over for Darvin Ham, who was dismissed as Lakers head coach after a disappointing (for the Lakers) tenure. Ham led the Lakers to a 90-74 record in two seasons with one appearance in the Western Conference Finals in 2023.
In 2024, however, the Lakers were eliminated in the first round.