Insider names early rumored favorite to be next Lakers head coach

After their season ended at the hands of the Denver Nuggets, the Los Angeles Lakers chose to cut ties with head coach Darvin Ham. Ham coached the Lakers for two seasons and led them to a 90-74 regular season record, while also leading them to the playoffs twice and to the Western Conference Finals in 2023.

However, the time came for the Lakers to make a change. Now, they appear to have a few candidates in mind. Those candidates include former Laker Tyronn Lue, Kenny Atkinson, and Sam Cassell. But one appears to have the edge over the others.

ESPN analyst J.J. Redick appears to have the inside track as of now. According to Marc Stein, Redick is the favorite to land the job.

"If you forced me right now to pinpoint a favorite based one everyone I've talked to, based on people I've spoken to in Chicago at the Pre-Draft Combine, the early favorite would be J.J. Redick," Stein said.

J.J. Redick appears to be favorite for Lakers head coach job

Several former players have ended up becoming coaches in the NBA. Redick would be the latest.

Ham, Cassell, Lue, Chauncey Billups, Steve Kerr, and Derek Fisher are a few examples. Redick currently has no coaching experience at the NBA level.

Still, he does know the game of basketball very well and might be able to connect with players on a certain level that Ham possibly wasn't able to. But what the Lakers want to be careful of is making sure that their next coach can gain the respect of the players and be an influential voice, rather than simply be a pushover for LeBron James should the future Hall-of-Famer remain a Laker this offseason.

Redick's knowledge of the game should serve him well, but if he is hired, he will need to make certain that he can gain the players' respect quickly.

Redick played 15 seasons in the NBA and had a solid career. He averaged 12.8 points per game, two rebounds and two assists. He also had a field goal percentage of 44.7 and a 3-point percentage of 41.5. Most of his career was spent with the Orlando Magic, but he had stints with the Los Angeles Clippers, Philadelphia 76ers, New Orleans Pelicans, Milwaukee Bucks, and Dallas Mavericks.

We'll see if he ultimately claims the job with the Lakers.