Lakers could disrupt 2024 NBA Finals with coaching announcement

A year ago, LeBron James was accused of stealing the limelight from the 2023 NBA Finals, specifically the Denver Nuggets, by suggesting he was considering retirement.   

This year, James' podcast partner, JJ Redick, could indirectly be doing the same, with The Athletic suggesting that the Lakers are "zeroing in" on hiring the ESPN analyst as their next head coach.

If the Lakers announce before or during the NBA Finals, which tips off Thursday, they could put Redick in an awkward spot. Redick will be on the ABC airwaves alongside Mike Breen and Doris Burke for the entirety of the seven-game series, which concludes June 23 with a possible Game 7.

Should the Lakers wait until the conclusion of the NBA Finals to make the announcement? At least Gilbert Arenas thinks the Lakers should "get it out of the way" so the attention isn't diverted from the Mavericks vs. Celtics series.

"If you wait until after the finals when there's no other basketball talk, the hire is going to be dissected," Arenas said on his "Gil's Arena" podcast. "Because it will be only [basketball] news, you're going to have everyone's opinion — the good, bad and ugly. You'll have stuff you don't want. If you don't want that pressure, just throw it [announce] right away."

Contrary to reports the Lakers had finalized Redick as their next head coach, the Los Angeles Times reported Tuesday that the Rob Pelinka-led front office was "in no rush" to name Darvin Ham's successor. The report added that Redick's representatives and the Lakers have "not had conversations" about contract details. 

"Redick is working the NBA Finals as a television analyst, and it's widely believed that is playing a role in how everyone will proceed in the closing stages of the search," wrote Lakers beat writer Dan Woike.

If Redick does land the high-profile job, he would join Steve Kerr, Jason Kidd, Steve Nash and Derek Fisher as former players who landed a head-coaching gig in the NBA with no prior coaching experience. At least two of those ex-players went on to succeed as head coaches.