JJ Redick will neither confirm nor deny the swirling rumors surrounding him and the vacant Lakers head coaching job.
The ESPN NBA analyst made an appearance on DraftKings’ “GoJo and Golic” show on Wednesday, and he remained tight-lipped about Tuesday’s report from The Athletic’s Shams Charania, which stated the Lakers are “zeroing in” on the former NBA star as their new coach.
“I would says this: My focus right now is on calling the NBA Finals,” he said from a hotel room in Boston ahead of Thursday’s NBA Finals Game 1 between the Celtics and Mavericks. “I am so fortunate that I’m in this position and I get to call these finals with Doris and Mike … my day-to-day right now is consumed with calling games, the 19 different podcasts I feel like I have, my obligations to all of our partners. My focus is on the NBA Finals.”
While he wouldn’t delve into the report, Redick did spare a thought for the reporter.
“In terms of Shams, that will be addressed once the season is over, I’ll just say that,” he said, adding, “I don’t mean any job — I mean Shams. We’ll wait on that one.”
Though the 39-year-old has never coached basketball beyond the youth level, he is renowned for his passionate and analytical approach to the game.
Per Charania, the Lakers became “infatuated” with Redick during the interview process, but have yet to make a final decision.
The team’s search has seemingly narrowed to Redick — who co-hosts the “Mind The Game” podcast with Lakers superstar LeBron James — and Pelicans associate head coach James Borrego.
Charania previously reported James would not be playing a part in Los Angeles’ hiring.
Redick’s media-heavy post-playing days could be a problem as posited by ex-NBAer Udonis Haslem.
“You’re gonna have guys that are gonna say, ‘Is Coach going to do a podcast after the game with LeBron?’ You’re gonna have a cynical locker room with guys that are gonna side-eye everything that JJ says. ‘Cause they’re gonna wonder is it JJ’s message or LeBron’s message,” Haslem said in May.
The Lakers also interviewed Celtics assistant Sam Cassell, Heat assistant Chris Quinn, Timberwolves assistant Micah Nori and Nuggets assistant David Adelman.