Three names have emerged as early top candidates for the Lakers, according to the latest report, in JJ Redick, James Borrego and Sam Cassell.
At last, it appears the Lakers search for a new head coach is beginning to heat up. Multiple reports indicated the team would begin to interview candidates in the coming days and candidate names finally started to surface as well.
The latest report from Shams Charania of The Athletic, though, provides the most insight yet into who the team may be targeting in the initial stages. According to Charania, JJ Redick, James Borrego and Sam Cassell are the early “leading targets” for the Lakers.
As the Los Angeles Lakers begin contacting head coaching candidates and scheduling interviews this week, JJ Redick, James Borrego and Sam Cassell have emerged as the franchise’s initial leading targets, league sources told The Athletic.
Redick has long been linked to this job with the Lakers. Similarly, Dave McMenamin of ESPN reported that Borrego would also receive an interview from the Lakers this week.
The new name linked to the Lakers in this report is Sam Cassell. The long-time NBA player turned long-time coach has been on the sideline for multiple teams. Most recently, Cassell has been an assistant for the Celtics this season. He has also been on the staff for the Sixers, Clippers and Wizards since 2009.
Notable about all three candidates is how young they are, relative to the normal average of coaches. Redick is 39, Borrego is 46 and Cassell is the oldest at 54. That appears to be a deliberate decision by the Lakers, according to Charania as well.
The franchise’s next coach will be tasked with guiding both the end of the LeBron James–Anthony Davis era — potentially a two-year window — and then the next era of Lakers basketball led by Davis. Los Angeles is looking for a coach who can grow with the franchise for years to come, according to team and league sources, placing a premium on maximizing Davis’ greatness, the current returning players and the element of high-level player development.
As one source briefed on the situation said, “This should be more of a hire about AD than LeBron.”
After years of hoping he would do so, Davis really seemed to take the reigns of the team out of LeBron’s hands last season. Considering the age of the pair, as noted above, the hire should be about AD as much as it is about LeBron.
These are almost certainly not going to be the only names linked to the Lakers in near future. But these do show that the Lakers are going in a very certain direction with their search, at least early on.
You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude.
