It is the week of the King! If coming back to the court against the Bulls earlier this week after 7 games out, though on a losing cause, was one, then wait for the bombshell to drop! The most recent return is the comeback of LeBron James’ podcast Mind The Game, which will premiere this April. And what better a day to choose than April Fool’s Day? Jokes aside, and every context to be on a serious note, the Lakers legend will sit with someone special this time, and it is not Lakers head coach JJ Redick this time. Any guesses? As teased, it is Steve Nash this time, and fans can’t keep calm anymore.

The fans went berserk. This was announced earlier today on Instagram. Imagine refreshing your feed and you see the Nash and the LeBron James sitting next to each other, sipping on a glass of wine. Anyone would break their phone in excitement. And if not their mobiles, at least the comments section of that Instagram post. All they realised was that this was the latest segment in an unsettling pattern.

“Nash starting the Lakers head coach interview process early,” is the top comment on the post. Any surprises?

Let’s rewind back to the playoff season in 2024. First round of the West, Nuggets vs Lakers. The head coach of the Showtime, Darvin Ham, was already on the hot seat, speculated to be getting the boot soon. Bron then decides to start a podcast with Redick, one of the prime candidates to replace Ham for the role. They lost the first round in 5 games to the Nuggets. Ham out, Redick in. The timing of this? Right as they kick on their pod.

A déjà vu situation clouds the comments section. “They got jj replacement ready 😂,” comments another, knowing what happened the last time.

I think all Lakers fans know how their team is doing currently. Their form has dipped over the last 10, boasting a poor 3-7 record over the time. What’s more worrying is that they’ve lost three on the bounce. The new speculation? JJ getting the boot, and Showtime legend Steve Nash signing on the dotted line. These were just some of the thousands of comments that flooded the post after it was published. But all this has gotten others to wonder: is this fair? Let’s look at what fans have to say about that.

Lakers poor form got fans split on JJ Redick

They were on course to greatness after the Luka magic was invariably committed to the Crypto.com Arena. And these weren’t just shortsighted predictions. The Lakers won 8 games in a row, with Luka Doncic being on the forefront of it all with box averages of 27.2/8.6/7.8 in just 18 games. But whether it was injuries, drop in quality, or the terror of the hectic NBA schedule- they ran out of steam, and in embarrasing fashion. As any heated debate in the NBA- the fans are split on Redick’s tenure as the Lakers gaffer.

Talking about JJ’s lack of experience, one fan tweeted saying, “The Lakers reportedly aren’t taking JJ Redick “seriously” as a coach, with some players calling him ‘JJ Reddit’.”

This argument does hold an ounce of water though. Anytime a chance is taken with a manager without real experience, it’s a huge gamble. With Redick, the Lakers front office put all their money on red. Will it pay off? Only time will tell. What’s for sure is that in order for it to pay off they have to play the long game. His hype coming into the league was on par with finding a cure to cancer. There’s more chance of it paying off than not. This proves that there are two sides to the story.

As a remniscance to his playing days, one fan tweeted a highlight reel commenting, “Before you hate on the Lakers hiring JJ Redick as head coach, just know this is the guy the Lakers just added 🔥🔥🔥🔥.”

Maybe his playing experience is what would help take them to a whole new level. The intake of the younger players like Jaxson Hayes, Austin Reeves, Rui Hachimura and the introduction of Luka Doncic has blended well with the experience of the likes of LeBron James and Gabe Vincent. This perfect balance will lay the foundation for the future stars to take over once the shackles come off the veterans in the squad. And JJ will get the necessary experience in the process too.

At the end of the day, it’s all just fan speculation- and far from reality. But the combination of these conjectures, media scrutiny, and the short-term memory of the NBA means that discussions about Redick’s job security persist, especially during any downturns in LA‘s form like the present.