In search of former head coaches for JJ Redick’s staff, the Lakers have reportedly gone after Dwane Casey and Jacque Vaughn, among others.
The Lakers have made it well-known through both reports and direct quotes that they want an experienced coaching staff around first-time head coach JJ Redick. The names mentioned throughout the reporting have been a bit repetitive with the likes of Scott Brooks, James Borrego and even Stan Van Gundy being bandied around.
On Wednesday, though, Marc Stein mentioned a pair of new names that could raise some eyebrows in his latest Substack newsletter in Dwane Casey and Jacque Vaughn.
The Lakers are still searching for former head coaches to join JJ Redick’s coaching staff. Among the names they are said to have pursued: Dwane Casey (who moved into a front office role in Detroit after coaching the Pistons for five seasons through 2022-23) and Jacque Vaughn (who was fired by the Nets after just a year-plus in charge in February).
Stein laid out the credentials for both Casey and Vaughn in terms of being former head coaches.
Vaughn is only 18 months removed from signing a contract extension with the Nets before eventually being fired in February. Notably, Vaughn was part of the Nets staff under Kenny Atkinson that rebuilt the team into a contender. Obviously, that roster also included current Laker D’Angelo Russell.
Specific to Redick, though, there was a brief bit of overlap between Vaughn’s first head coaching job in the NBA with the Magic beginning in 2012 and Redick’s final season in Orlando. JJ was traded midway through Vaughn’s first season.
Casey has the unfortunate distinction of winning the National Basketball Coaches Association Coach of the Year with the Raptors. He immediately landed with the Pistons, where he coached for five seasons and led them to their most recent playoff appearance.
However, after the 2022-23 season, he stepped down as coach and has served in the front office since. Interestingly, with Trajan Langdon moving into the role of President of Basketball Operations, the franchise had had a number of changes and that could perhaps open the door for Casey to join the Lakers.
Unlike Vaughn, Casey doesn’t have any direct connection to Redick. However, it does show an openness to different voices on the staff, which was different from Darvin Ham’s staff, which was comprised of coaches Ham had met throughout his career.
The good news in all of this is that the Lakers are turning over many leaves in search of adding experienced coaches to JJ Redick’s staff.
You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude.
