The are, above all else, star-chasers. This is franchise whose core philosophy more often than not boils down to landing the big fish and figuring the rest out later. For the better part of 60 years, that philosophy has worked, and that success has informed future decision-making.
That much was evident in the way that they conducted their coaching search, which now appears to be culminating , but was similarly evident in the way that they positioned their other top candidate, ESPN broadcaster . Redick is a big name in his own right, with a 15-year playing career and very successful early run in the media, but he lacks Hurley's readymade coaching credentials. Before Hurley was seemingly on the table, all of the reporting suggested that the Lakers didn't believe Redick needed such a resume.
In May, reported that the Lakers view Redick as a "Pat Riley-like coaching prospect." There are, of course, surface-level similarities between Riley, arguably the greatest Lakers coach of them all, and Redick, a promising newcomer with no experience. Both were decorated college stars at major programs before settling into careers as role players.
Both transitioned from playing into broadcasting—though Riley was a championship assistant before ascending into a head coaching role. That last caveat is important, as the Redick-Riley similarities, at this stage, really are just surface level. Redick, given time to grow into coaching as Riley did when he was an assistant, might one day become a .
