Report: Lakers could bring back familiar face to join J.J. Redick’s staff

The Los Angeles Lakers are seemingly interested in bringing back a familiar face to complement J.J. Redick’s coaching staff, per sources from Anthony Irwin of Lakers Daily.

“Redick and the Lakers have already been already working to compile his coaching staff, sources say, with [James] Borrego, [Sam] Cassell, Jared Dudley and Scott Brooks seen as primary targets,” Irwin wrote. “League sources say Borrego is likely going to be named the next coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Cassell is also likely to get a promotion with the Boston Celtics after Charles Lee took the Charlotte Hornets job. Hiring Dudley may also be difficult, as he is seen as a valued member of the Dallas Mavericks coaching staff. Another name to keep an eye on is Miles Simon, who had previously worked with the Lakers on Luke Walton’s and Frank Vogel’s staffs, earning a championship ring for his role with the 2019-20 team.”

The Lakers announced their decision to hire Redick to be the 29th head coach in franchise history on Thursday.

As Irwin alluded to, Simon spent several seasons serving as an assistant coach with the storied Lakers franchise, with his first season with the team coming back in 2017-18. In each of his first two seasons on Los Angeles’ coaching staff, the team missed out on the playoffs.

But Simon’s Lakers took that next step as a team after trading for Anthony Davis ahead of the 2019-20 season. Los Angeles won 52 of its 71 regular-season contests and parlayed that success into the 2020 NBA Playoffs, as the Lakers won the title after eliminating Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat in six games in the championship series.

Interestingly, Simon spent time working for the coaching staff of the Lakers’ G League affiliate in the South Bay Lakers at one point as well, as he worked as the squad’s head coach during the 2021-22 season.

Most recently, Simon worked as an assistant coach for the Phoenix Suns during the 2023-24 regular season. The Suns’ head coach was none other than Vogel, who Simon won a title with in the dawn of the decade.

Considering that the last time the Lakers won a title Simon was an important part of their coaching staff, it’s easy to see why Los Angeles is reportedly targeting him. After all, ever since Los Angeles won the 2020 title, it hasn’t seen much success in the playoffs.

The Lakers have won just two playoff series since they earned their 17th title in franchise history, and both of those series wins came in the 2023 NBA Playoffs, when Los Angeles made it to the Western Conference Finals despite ending up as the No. 7 seed in the conference. Los Angeles beat the Memphis Grizzlies in the first round of the playoffs and Golden State Warriors in the second round.