“Hurt That You Left Me”: Doris Burke Grills ‘Sicko’ JJ Redick After Ditching ESPN Career For $32 Million Lakers Job

JJ Redick seems to have made up his mind about coaching for some time before he decided to test his luck with a desperate Lakers team. The popular podcaster had already been attending interviews before the prime chance of Los Angeles fell in his lap. While there have been many narratives surrounding the whole subject, one aspect still remains unanswered. Yes, it surely is a question Coach Redick has been asked a few times over. And he surely has had an answer ready for them.

But now, we have a familiar face and friend asking JJ the same question – why did the 40-year-old leave a successful media career to be a coach? This was Doris Burke’s doubt. The first woman to ever call a Finals game in NBA history or that of any major professional sports history, Burke is truly a standout media veteran. And she has seen JJ Redick in all his glory as a podcast host, broadcaster, analyst, etc.

So, when Doris caught hold of him, it was exactly what she asked. “You did not have to be a coach. So why?” Burke asked, but not before she admitted something else. “No. 1, I’m hurt that you left me. But I’m curious. What? Is it something that you believe is in your soul to do? Because coaches are coaches!”

Understanding the weight of her question, JJ took a moment to organize his thoughts as he answered, “I felt a calling to coach. Part of it is that I’m just a sicko and a masochist and I wanted to sign up for high stakes, high pressure. The other part of it is that, in my retirement, I realized that what gives me fulfillment and what gives me drive, and motivation, that’s competition, that’s performance, that’s collaboration being part of a team. I certainly felt all that during media.” 

“The other parts of that are leadership and service. And I said this in my press conference, like a big driving factor is, I just wanna help people. I wanna help players, I wanna help coaches, I wanna empower people. I obviously wanna help this Lakers organization get to the top,” Redick finished.

Well, it’s not getting any more high pressure or high stakes than a down-in-the-dumps Purple & Gold! Doris Burke scratching her head over JJ’s decision will probably make a little more sense if we go back to a factor NBA insider Brian Windhorst talked about in his podcast.

Windhorst makes a keen observation regarding JJ Redick and his head coach decision

In a June episode of his pod, Hoop Collective, the ESPN veteran cited an NBA source Who belived that between ThreeFourTwo Productions, and his salary at ESPN as a top NBA game analyst and talent on First Take and NBA Today, the former sharpshooter was very well making more than $5 million more than the Purple & Gold’s desired coach, Dan Hurley did in a year at UConn. In fact, Windhorst pointed out something else.

“I was talking to somebody in the business just this week, and he told me that Mind the Game, had it continued into next year with LeBron and JJ, would potentially be an absolute cash cow.” He wouldn’t be wrong there. Despite all the criticisms directed at James and JJ, no one can contest the sheer knowledge the latter possessed when it came to the strategic nuts and bolts of basketball.

In addition to his own pod, JJ’s production company also hosts a few other podcasts, namely, Road Trippin’ by Richard Jefferson, Macrodosing at Barstool Sports, and Trey Wingo’s Alternate Routes with Wondery. We don’t have to tell you that they all bring in quite the revenue. With the kind of basketball consumers in the States alone, not to mention, the growing popularity around the world, these shows have a lot more consumers than before.

So, in short, for him to keep aside all those to solely focus on coaching could very well be taken as a sign of his genuine interest in the job. Do you agree? Is this a sign that Los Angeles might actually be on the path to redemption with a coach with JJ’s mindset at the helm? Let us know what you think.

Before you go, though, be sure to check this video of Leonardo Armato’s take on the deadly duo, Shaq and Kobe. Don’t forget to check back in for more such updates from our ES Fancast!