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After just two seasons under Darvin Ham, the LA Lakers once again find themselves with a head coaching vacancy. As they continued their search, Detroit Pistons legend Rasheed Wallace shared his thoughts on the kind of candidate they should be looking for.
With players like LeBron James trying to contend right now, Wallace feels they need a veteran coach.
"You gonna need a veteran coach," Wallace said on "Sheed and Tyler" podast. "You dealing with the main veteran in (LeBron James) who gotta win now.
"The window is looking … real thin. He's trying to win now, then you got another veteran with (Anthony Davis), and he's trying to win now, so then that way, it'll be less on his body later on. I think they need a veteran players coach."
Over the past few weeks, the main name tied to LA's coaching job has been JJ Redick. Just two years removed from his playing days, the journeyman sharpshooter has no prior coaching experience at the NBA level.
While LA did reach the conference finals under Ham, they did not have the overall success they hoped for. This season, they went 47-35 before being eliminated in the first round by the Denver Nuggets.
Lakers have minimal options to replace Darvin Ham
With stars like LeBron James and Anthony Davis on the roster, the Lakers want to be in the title picture right now. Even though some candidates might have great minds, they'll still need to adapt to the role of head coach.
At this point, LA has minimal options when it comes to veteran coaches. The best option might have been Mike Budenholzer, but he inked a deal to become coach of the Phoenix Suns. Ty Lue was another name connected to the Lakers, but he signed an extension to remain with the LA Clippers.
Frank Vogel, an experienced coach who was recently sacked by the Suns, is on the market. He has had success in Los Angeles, having helped LeBron and AD win a title in the Bubble in 2020. Aside from him, their best option for a veteran coach would be to lure Kenny Atkinson away from the Golden State Warriors.
As the search continues, LA is looking at a handful of current assistant coaches. Among the handful expected to interview for the job are James Borrego, Chris Quinn of the Miami Heat and Nuggets assistant David Adelman.
Another former NBA player tied to the Lakers as of late is Sam Cassell. Along with winning three titles as a player, he has extensive assistant coaching experience. Cassell spent years with Doc Rivers on the Clippers and Philadelphia 76ers. This year, he has worked for the Boston Celtics on Joe Mazzulla's staff.
