Shaq Warns JJ Redick of Hard Struggles That Could Trigger Lakers’ Downfall: “What Kind of Coach Is He?”

JJ Redick has 7’1″, 325lbs of pressure on him now. And that’s not including his new job. Shaquille O’Neal, who has worked under some of the greatest coaches in NBA history, is giving the new Los Angeles Lakers head coach a 100% seal of approval. But as Shaq puts it, it’s tougher to maintain that than to gain it. As if Redick isn’t already in the deep end already with his lack of coaching experience, Shaq’s throwing in some figurative sharks with a friendly warning. This is after all the Lakers, a team that has only thrived under the best coaches.

“I’m happy for JJ,” Shaq says at first on The Big Podcast, a month after Redick was a guest on it and refused to open up about his discussions with the Lakers. Perhaps in private, Shaq already warned him but he still expressed what this job will entail. “A lot of pressure,” to summarize. The long of it is, “You know winning games will not be good enough. [There’s an] expectation when you take that job, when you take the Miami Heat job, when you take a job where there’s a lot of talent. The expectation is to win championships.”

Shaq knows Redick is one of the best ball handlers of this generation and he’s also analytical as a sports media personality. “What kind of coach is he?” he can’t say yet but he knows there’s negative chatter about his lack of experience for the top job. As per Shaq, respect for the coach takes precedence. “For me as a player, if I didn’t respect the coach, it was easy for me to turn my 100% down,” he said to imply how that can make the entire team decline.

He elaborated speaking of the time he worked with Phil Jackson during the Lakers dynasty and with Pat Riley in Miami. Shaq would give his 100% anyway. But when playing under a coach with a storied career – like Jackson coming to LA after six championships with the Michael Jordan-led Bulls – Shaq would take his word for the gospel.

Big Diesel got slammed if he couldn’t make the team win. That’s why he valued his coach’s resume in order to trust them. That’s where, he believes Redick is at a disadvantage.

What JJ Redick has going for him

On Monday, Rob Pelinka finally ended the speculative saga by announcing JJ Redick as head coach of the Lakers. If fans weren’t divided before, it’s worse now. Very few believe Redick is up for coaching a very demanding organization. Shaq is deviating from his own policy by ignoring the blank space under the ‘coaching history’ of Redick’s resume and the ring-less career unlike Bulls champion-turned-Warriors HC, Steve Kerr. He’s taking a leap of faith on Redick’s sound analytical skills and playing experience.

Shaq’s friend and ex-agent, Leonard Armato said something similar exclusively to EssentiallySports. “JJ Redick was a pro player. He has been in the system. He knows the game. The question is can he command the respect of these players and can he make the important decisions necessary to put the right players on the court at the same time. So if he has the respect of the players because he has played…I wouldn’t hesitate to hire him…” 

It appears this was the reason the Lakers had been pursuing Redick for from the start. He just has to maintain that 100% now.