Why the Lakers are giving up the coaching search for Ty Lue and Jason Kidd

After being eliminated in the first round of the NBA Playoffs by the Denver Nuggets, the Los Angeles Lakers have decided to go in a different direction when it comes to their head coach. Late last week, the Lakers informed Darvin Ham and the rest of the coaching staff of their firing. There are rumors that the Lakers are looking to coach current Los Angeles Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue and current Dallas Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd, among others.

But now it looks like the Lakers are moving away from targeting either Tyronn Lue or Jason Kidd, according to longtime NBA insider Marc Stein. Stein reported that the Lakers no longer view Lue or Kidd as realistic targets. Lue is reportedly seeking a long-term contract extension with the Clippers, while Kidd is reportedly in the same boat with the Mavericks.

Although the Clippers were eliminated in the first round of the NBA playoffs, both sides are believed to be in agreement to push through an extension ahead of the team's move to a new arena for the 2024-25 season. It's also hard to imagine Kidd getting anywhere, as the Mavericks are in the midst of a hugely successful season and have done well overall in the three years Kidd has been at the helm.

Who is the next Lakers head coach?

With Kidd and Lue seemingly out of the picture, the pool of available Lakers coaching candidates is much smaller. Not that Kidd or Lue were viable targets to begin with, but the Lakers' shortlist is shrinking even more.

But despite Darvin Ham's shortcomings as a coach, he did his best with the team he was given. One could argue that Ham and the Lakers actually overperformed in his first year in 2022-23. The Lakers entered the 2023 postseason as the No. 7 seed because they had to go through the play-in tournament to reach the playoffs.

Despite this, the Lakers actually won two playoff series and reached the Western Conference Finals despite not being that good of a team. They ended this season exactly where most people expected. A low playoff placing and a first round exit.

But that wasn't good enough for Ham, who was released with two years left on his contract. So with Lue and Kidd out, where do the Lakers turn in terms of their coaching search?

One name that has come up in recent days is former NBA player JJ Redick. Redick has no head coaching experience and has instead moved into the media and broadcasting department since his retirement.

Redick, who was mentioned as a possible head coach, was not actually from the Lakers. His name first came up when the Charlotte Hornets were looking to replace Steve Clifford, who is moving to a front office position. Redick apparently has the respect of LeBron James and the two recently started a new podcast called Mind the Game.