Charlotte Hornets reportedly to interview J.J. Redick for head coaching job
The Charlotte Hornets certainly are casting a wide net in their search for a new head coach.
Among the numerous assistant coaches whom new GM Jeff Peterson has reportedly spoken to we can now add the name of former player turned broadcaster/podcaster J.J. Redick, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic.
The Charlotte Hornets are interviewing JJ Redick for their head coaching job, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. The 15-year NBA veteran and former Duke star has shown an interest in making a coaching jump in recent years.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 22, 2024
Redick was regarded as a high IQ player during his career, and anyone who has listened to his podcasts — particularly his new one, “Mind the Game” with LeBron James — is not going to question that part of his qualifications. The knock would be his lack of experience, as he has said on his pods his only head coaching experience is his son's middle school AAU team.
However, he would not be the first person to make the leap from broadcaster to coach, albeit with mixed results. On the positive side, owner Jerry Buss pulled former player Pat Riley out of the announcer's chair and made him head coach of the Showtime Lakers, and that could not have worked out much better. However, sometimes hiring a smart former player without coaching experience looks a lot more like Steve Nash in Brooklyn.
That Redick took the interview is a sign of what a basketball junkie he is. After a lengthy playing career, he is now part of ABC's No. 1 broadcast team and he has two successful podcasts — most people would be more than happy with that. Redick apparently looked all that and still wanted to have a conversation about whether he could fix the Hornets.
Redick joins a long list of people interviewed by Peterson in the first phase of finding a replacement for Steve Clifford. We know he has spoken with Lindsey Harding (Kings' G-League head coach), Charles Lee (Boston), and David Adelman (Denver), but there are unquestionably more. The Hornets also spoke with two coaches who took other jobs: Jordi Fernandez, who is now the head coach in Brooklyn, and former Suns' assistant coach Kevin Young, who chose to return home and take the BYU coaching job.
The next head coach in Charlotte takes over a rebuilding team, but one with some potential cornerstones for the future in Brandon Miller and LaMelo Ball (if Ball can stay healthy). The Hornets also have a 65.6% chance of landing a top-five pick in this June's draft (and another 27.1% it's sixth).
