The Los Angeles Lakers officially announced their full coaching staff for the 2024-25 season on Monday, as head coach JJ Redick will be joined by six assistants. The staff includes veterans Nate McMillan and Scott Brooks, and the first female coach in franchise history, Lindsey Harding.
Here's a look at the full group:
- Head coach: JJ Redick
After a 15-year career, Redick retired in 2021 and quickly became one of the most respected members of the media. Perhaps most notably, he started a podcast with LeBron James in March, entitled "Mind the Game," which garnered terrific reviews. He was able to parlay his on-air success, and friendship with James, into the Lakers job despite no previous coaching experience.
Redick is starting his coaching career by jumping straight into the deep end, and how he'll fare remains to be seen. What we do know is that he has a high basketball IQ, embraces analytics and has James' trust, which might be the most important factor of all.
- Assistant coach: Nate McMillan
McMillan has over two decades of coaching experience with four different franchises, and was most recently the head coach of the Atlanta Hawks from 2021-23. As a fellow former player who made the transition to the sidelines, he figures to play a vital role in helping Redick learn the ropes.
- Assistant coach: Scott Brooks
Like McMillan, Brooks is an NBA lifer who brings a vast amount of knowledge and experience to the table. He had his best run as the head coach of the Oklahoma City Thunder from 2008-15 and was most recently working as an assistant for the Portland Trail Blazers.
- Assistant coach: Bob Beyer
Beyer got his start as a coach at the collegiate level way back in 1983, and though he has never been a head coach in the NBA, he's been an assistant in the league for over two decades, working with eight franchises along the way. He is yet another veteran presence for Redick to lean on.
- Assistant coach: Greg St. Jean
When the Lakers won the championship in the bubble in 2020, St. Jean was an player development coach under Frank Vogel. Now, he's back to work alongside Redick. Adding someone who has experience working with the organization and multiple players on the roster, including James and Anthony Davis, is a smart move.
- Assistant coach: Lindsey Harding
Harding and Redick both starred at Duke in the mid-2000s, and now they'll reunite on the Lakers. After a long WNBA career, Harding has worked her way up the coaching ranks and was named G League Coach of the Year last season for her work with the Stockton Kings. She is the first female coach in Lakers history.
- Assistant coach: Beau Levesque
Following a short-lived overseas career, Levesque entered the coaching world and was most recently the player development coordinator for the Los Angeles Clippers. Redick has noted that he wants player development to be a key focus of his tenure, and Levesque will be at the center of that mission.
The Lakers are coming off a disappointing season in which they earned the No. 7 seed in the Western Conference playofs via the Play-In Tournament, and were eliminated in the first round by the Denver Nuggets. The early exit sealed Darvin Ham's fate, and he was fired after two seasons in charge.
Redick will take over largely the same roster from last season, and will be charged with turning the Lakers back into a contender in the loaded Western Conference.
