Lakers Rumors: JJ Redick, Cassell Among HC Candidates Interviewed amid LeBron Buzz

Nearly three weeks after Darvin Ham was fired, the Los Angeles Lakers have finally started interviewing candidates to be their next head coach.

Per The Athletic's Jovan Buha and Shams Charania, the Lakers have had formal meetings with JJ Redick, Boston Celtics assistant Sam Cassell and New Orleans Pelicans associate head coach James Borrego in the past several days.

Other candidates expected to be interviewed include Denver Nuggets assistant David Adelman, Minnesota Timberwolves assistant Micah Nori and Miami Heat assistant Chris Quinn.

Much has been made about Redick as a candidate because of his relationship with LeBron James, but Charania reported on Monday that James is not involved in this process and it will be the organization's decision.

Redick and James have an established relationship as co-hosts of the Mind the Game podcast, but James' agent, Rich Paul, told Buha and Charania that "does not mean that (James) wants Redick as his head coach."

Amid the surprise interest from the Lakers, Redick has been open about being part of a locker room and competing are things that he misses since retiring as a player and those elements are all part of coaching.

Buha reported last week that Redick was "slightly ahead of the field" for the Lakers, but that was before the club started formally interviewing candidates.

The Lakers appear to be taking a very patient approach with the hiring process. Ham was fired on May 3 following the team's first-round playoff loss to the Denver Nuggets.

Buha and Charania reported last week the organization views the next head coach as "more of a hire" for Anthony Davis, who is signed through 2026-27 with a player option for 2027-28, than James.

Borrego had a brief stint working with Davis during the summer of his rookie season with the New Orleans Hornets. Borrego was an assistant on Monty Williams' staff at the time before he left to take the same role for the Orlando Magic prior to the start of the 2012-13 season.

The 46-year-old Borrego is the only candidate mentioned for the Lakers who has previous head-coaching experience at the college or NBA levels. He owns a 148-183 record in four seasons with the Charlotte Hornets and a 30-game stint as the interim coach for the Magic in 2015.

Los Angeles has cycled through seven different head coaches since Phil Jackson retired after the 2010-11 season. Luke Walton and Frank Vogel are the only coaches from that group who lasted more than two seasons.