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The teams that bid farewell to the season early have started making core-level developments in their team. The Lakers started it after firing their head coach, Darvin Ham. With that termination, many potential names popped up in the NBA community. However, NBA insider Brett Siegel has cleared the air, predicting a possibility of a LeBron James-Frank Vogel reunion.

The probability of a possible match-up is high because of the elimination process. Peak candidates for the position, like Mike Budenholzer joined Phoneix Suns, while Tyronn Lue is not in the mood to leave the LA Clippers yet. The rumors of JJ Redick joining the Lakers have also calmed down after the bustling. Currently, the only feasible veteran that the Purple and Gold jerseys are left with is Frank Vogel. A coach King James previously worked with, revealing the partnership to have “been nothing but candid, great conversations.” However, the question is, will Vogel rejoin the Lakers after the humiliation he faced?

He was the one who led them during their 2020 NBA Championship title, however, there was no party a year later, as the franchise didn’t even make the playoffs. Previously described as “strong-minded” by LeBron James, Vogel ended up biting the bullet after failing to make an experiment by the leadership work.

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The Russell Westbrook addition to the Purple and Gold seemingly brought wrath for Vogel from the front office. Sam Amick of The Athletic revealed that Vogel’s failure to handle Westbrook and make him a productive part of the program was a serious reason he was shown the door. However, many speculated if the player was given enough time to succeed. However, that’s a story of the past, which is being discussed even more now because Vogel lost his job again!

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Yes, the Suns have relieved the head coach of his duties after he failed to capitalize on Devin Booker, Bradley Beal, and Kevin Durant’s caliber. Frank Vogel went 49-33, but the embarrassing playoff exits to the defending Champions likely sealed his fate. And this happened after he publicly revealed he had Mat Ishbia’s “full support”.

In the end, Vogel is now free to take up a new challenge again. A return to the Lakers will be his fifth job. However, he’s not the only candidate. Other names like Micah Nori, David Adelman, Ty Lue, and Kenny Atkinson are also in consideration. While the Purple and Gold lost the race to Mike Budenholzer to the Suns, they won’t want to delay too much. Notably, JJ Redick was also linked to the vacancy. With no connection to coaching any basketball team, the ex-player is known to have a good rapport with LeBron James. With a lot at stake for Bron, what’s the latest on Redick?

LeBron James’ pal JJ Redick blasted by NBA analyst, amid Lakers Head Coach rumors!

It’s been about a week since Shams Charania’s report regarding JJ Redick being a Lakers candidate. Having led a fairly successful basketball career across 15 seasons, Redick had the favor of numerous, including Skip Bayless. “I’ll be honest with you… I want to see JJ Redick coach the Lakers… He can give as good as he gets,” he had said. However, it seems to have not panned out well with died-down talks and a little criticism.

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Recently, on the NBACentral show, Colin Cowherd went after JJ Redick as he did not like that the latter was wearing a hat backward with James during the Mind The Game podcast. The criticism from Colin stemmed from the rumors of Redick being a possible coach. “He looks like a guy that’s going to move my couch. And I’ll see when I tell bosses, ‘I don’t think he’s in’. But if you want somebody to clean out your garage, hire him”. Quite a bold take, which enraged many on the internet, but the two concerned individuals, JJ and LeBron, took the lighthearted route.

USA Today via Reuters

Though JJ Redick’s ticket to the Lakers seems unconfirmed as of today, LeBron James’ liking for Redick has not decreased. Following the instance, LBJ did not hesitate to stand in his podcast pal’s defense as he replied to Colin’s comment, writing, “He really doesn’t like your🧢JJ!!🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣. I wonder if these two [Jason Kidd and Ryan Smith who were also wearing their hat backwards] are ok👇🏽. They have damn good jobs, I believe.” Even Redick couldn’t control his laughter, as King James went hard on the one who targeted the reverse hat look.

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At the end of it all, Frank Vogel is the most probable candidate for the Lakers. However, there is a chance that the front office might look for a fresh perspective this year. Notably, since Phil Jackson’s retirement more than a decade ago, no Head Coach has lasted more than three seasons at the Lakers.

Will LeBron James reunite with his favorite coach or his podcast buddy? What do you all think? Let us know in the comments below.

Written by

Krishna Shukla

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Krishna Shukla is an NBA Writer at Essentially Sports. After working extensively across different divisions at ES, his love for Kobe enticed him into the world of basketball. He specializes in reconstructing basketball podcasts in his writing, along with writing injury reports.
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Edited by

Shivatmika Manvi