LOS ANGELES — JJ Redick is midway through his first season as Lakers coach in his first NBA coaching experience. Two years before taking that job, Redick gave strong consideration towards joining Joe Mazzulla’s coaching staff in Boston after Ime Udoka’s suspension at the start of the 2022-23 season.
Before Thursday’s matchup between the Celtics and Lakers, Redick spoke at length about what went into Mazzulla’s recruitment of him on multiple occasions.
“Joe got the job on Friday and we played golf Sunday morning,” Redick said Thursday night of the interaction back in September 2022. “We talked about potentially joining the Celtics staff. It was something, it was those early stages of really knowing I wanted to coach but not sure what the timing would look like.”
Mazzulla took another run at Redick midway through the 2022-23 season after top assistant Damon Stoudemire departed for the head coach job at Georgia Tech.
“We stayed in touch,” Redick revealed. “There was another sort of conversation about joining the staff later. The last two years, podcast included, calling games and getting to see him. Particularly last year, we talked quite a bit on text, after games, whatnot. When I was going through this process, he along with a few other coaches in the NBA were really helpful. Not just in preparing for an interview, but really helping me understand what this was and what it required.”
Redick went on to interview for other head coaching positions in the past two years including landing the Lakers job last summer. Mazzulla clearly holds the former NBA veteran in high regard and reflected fondly on those interactions and the relationship they’ve continued to build.
“I don’t know how close he was,” Mazzulla said when asked about Redick joining the Celtics. “You’d have to ask him. But I know we had a couple talks about it and he typically was interested in it but I don’t know as far as where he was in that process. But yeah, you learn from each other. He’s an analytical mind. He can think the game. He can think on his feet. So he’s definitely somebody that you can learn from.”
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JJ Redick, the former NBA player turned analyst, recently revealed on his podcast that the Boston Celtics made multiple attempts to hire him before he ultimately decided to join the Los Angeles Lakers as a special advisor.
In the latest episode of “The Old Man and the Three” podcast, Redick shared that the Celtics had reached out to him multiple times over the past few years, expressing their interest in bringing him on board in a front office role. However, Redick ultimately decided to join the Lakers, citing the opportunity to work alongside GM Rob Pelinka and the allure of being part of a storied franchise like the Lakers.
Redick’s decision to join the Lakers instead of the Celtics came as a surprise to many, given the longstanding rivalry between the two teams. However, Redick explained that the opportunity to work with the Lakers was simply too good to pass up, and he is excited to begin this new chapter in his career.
While Redick may have turned down the Celtics, it’s clear that he is excited about the future with the Lakers and is looking forward to making a positive impact on the organization. It will be interesting to see how his role with the Lakers evolves and what contributions he will make to the team in the coming years.
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