The Lakers spent the last week aggressively pursuing UConn men’s basketball head coach Dan Hurley, but after a week of courting and rumors, Hurley will remain in the collegiate ranks. This leaves the Lakers still in search of a coach with the NBA Draft just a little over two weeks away. With the Hurley sweepstakes ending, the Lakers plan to refocus on other candidates.
JJ Redick and James Borrego are still on the list of potential coaches, per ESPN. Borrego has reportedly already interviewed with the Lakers, and L.A. is hoping to schedule its first formal interview with Redick. Prior to his current role as an assistant coach with the New Orleans Pelicans, Borrego served as head coach of Charlotte Hornets for four years. Other names that were previously targeted by the Lakers include Celtics assistant Sam Cassell, Nuggets assistant David Adelman, Timberwolves assistant Micah Nori, and Heat assistant Chris Quinn.
Before Hurley was seen as the frontrunner for the job with the Lakers, Redick was viewed as their top candidate despite having no prior head coaching experience. Redick recently said he’ll address coaching rumors after he’s done calling NBA Finals games. With him potentially back in contention for the top job at Staples Center, it could become more interesting to see how this unfolds. The Lakers ideally hope to have a new coach in place before they make important decisions during this year’s NBA Draft where they are viewed as favorites to draft Bronny James in round two and pair him with his father in purple and gold.
