Lakers or Pistons? Why JJ Redick should launch his coaching career in Detroit and avoid the L.A. circus

JJ Redick hasn’t publicly commented on the state of the Los Angeles Lakers as he has interviewed for their head-coaching job. During the search that led up to the hire of Darvin Ham in 2022, though, he had plenty to say. “Until they start building their team like every other team in the NBA does, in the modern NBA, I don’t think this is a good job,” he said on a 2022 appearance on ESPN’s Get Up.

The roster that the Lakers have built since then is much closer to league standard than it was in 2022. Russell Westbrook is gone. There’s more shooting even if there isn’t enough of it. Every position is addressed at least somewhat. On paper, the Lakers at least somewhat resemble a normal NBA team. The Detroit Pistons do not. Their two best players, Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey, are both point guards. The fringes of the roster were populated largely by draft busts from other teams like Kevin Knox, James Wiseman and Marvin Bagley. None of their players ranked in the top 90 in the NBA in made 3-pointers. They had too many centers and no true wings.

There is a world in which the right coach could take over the Lakers and lead them to 50 wins with the right tweaks. That isn’t happening for the Pistons, at least not yet. They are still relatively early into a rebuild that isn’t far away from getting expensive. Cunningham is eligible for a rookie extension this offseason. Ivey and Jalen Duren will be eligible next summer. There are going to have to be hard decisions about who stays and who goes here. At the very least, the Pistons need a reshuffle to diversify the skill sets of their core players. At most, they may eventually need to acknowledge that Cunningham is the only cornerstone piece they have and re-evaluate their attachment to anyone else. If Redick’s goal is to win right now, the Lakers are a better bet for him.

It should therefore come as no surprise, then, to hear that, at least for the moment, the basketball world seems to expect Redick to land in Los Angeles, not Detroit. ” Redick is currently a prime candidate for the Lakers job, so it…

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Author : Sam Quinn

Publish date : 2024-06-20 16:57:59

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