An NBA assistant coach who used to play for the Lakers has criticized his former team for its gamble on hiring JJ Redick and suggested he’s more than content to wait for the right time to lead a team one day.
The 39-year-old former forward, who now coaches the Dallas Mavericks’ Summer League team, spoke to reporters on Tuesday, four days before his first game in charge against the Utah Jazz.
He said at the beginning: ‘I want to be a coach, that’s my dream…
‘Some of us aren’t JJ Redick and we get to the top right away… Sometimes you have to put in a few (years) as an assistant.
‘We all have different times… My time will come later, but my time will essentially come.’
JJ Redick, 40, was named head coach of the Lakers despite having no notable NBA experience
The Lakers, who hired Redick despite his lack of head coaching experience and just three seasons after he retired as a player, named Scott Brooks and Nate McMillan as assistants to help their new man in charge next season.
McMillan, 59, compiled a 760-668 record in 19 seasons with the Seattle SuperSonics (2000-05), Portland Trail Blazers (2005-12), Indiana Pacers (2016-20) and Atlanta Hawks (2020-23). His teams made the playoffs 11 times, including a run to the 2021 Eastern Conference finals with Atlanta.
Brooks, 58, posted a 521-414 record in 12 seasons with the Oklahoma City Thunder (2008-15) and Washington Wizards (2016-21). His teams made the playoffs eight times, including Oklahoma City’s appearance in the 2012 NBA Finals. He was the NBA Coach of the Year in 2009-10.
Earlier this month, at a news conference with general manager Rob Pelinka at the Lakers’ training complex, Redick humorously accepted the improbability of his extraordinary signing as he looked out at a gym full of team employees, media members and some of his new players.
The former NBA forward who spoke out against the Lakers’ hiring was in the team’s title race in 2020
He is now an assistant coach with the Dallas Mavericks under Jason Kidd after retiring in 2021.
“I’ve never coached in the NBA,” Redick said with a straight face. “I don’t know if you’ve heard that.”
Redick’s coaching experience is limited to volunteering with his sons’ youth teams, but he plans to bridge that gap in his coaching resume with an encyclopedic knowledge of basketball, personal charisma, an experienced coaching staff and a drive to innovate.
“This process has been surreal, to say the least,” Redick said. “I take this responsibility very seriously.”
“The Lakers have some of the most passionate fans in the world and the expectation is to win a championship, so my job is to build a championship-caliber team. That’s what I signed up for.”
The player is none other than Jared Dudley, who spent two seasons as LeBron James’ teammate.
Redick also said he got this opportunity without any help or advice from LeBron James, with whom he co-hosted a popular podcast, “Mind the Game,” until he was hired by the Lakers.
Jared Dudley’s words will surely be on your radar when the Lakers and Mavs meet next season. Dudley, who is now an assistant with the Mavs, was part of the Lakers’ championship team in the 2020 NBA bubble.
During the team’s title run, Dudley averaged 1.5 points per game.
But he missed 33 games over the course of the 2020-21 NBA season due to a torn MCL and a right knee bruise, prompting him to retire and join the Dallas coaching staff, where he said he had a “front-of-the-bench” role.
