The offseason is still young, but the Los Angeles Lakers have already undergone several significant changes. While Austin Reaves signed a massive $185 million contract extension to stick around in town, LeBron James is set to depart in free agency, leaving a big void that the team will have to fill moving forward.
While the players will have to pick up the slack, head coach JJ Redick is going to have to get creative when it comes to finding ways to maximize his roster as well. According to a new report, it appears he will be getting some help from none other than Zach Guthrie, as he’s being promoted from the G League to the NBA, where he will be joining Redick’s coaching staff.
Zach Guthrie Promoted to NBA, Set to Join JJ Redick’s Coaching Staff
Redick was a surprise hire for the Lakers as a head coach ahead of the 2024-25 campaign, as he had no prior coaching experience at the NBA level. He did, however, enjoy a solid playing career as a sharpshooting guard, and his relationship with James made him a sensible hire, given the future Hall of Famer’s influence over the organization.
While James is gone, Redick is sticking around as L.A.’s head coach, but some changes will be getting made to his staff. In the G League, Guthrie has put himself on the team’s radar for his work with the South Bay Lakers, as he led the team to the best record in the entire G League last season.
Before finding his way to the Lakers, Guthrie worked as an assistant coach with the Utah Jazz, Dallas Mavericks, and Washington Wizards. In fact, he actually worked with Redick during his final year in the league as a player with the Mavericks in 2021, so these guys already have experience with each other. Now, they will be working together on Los Angeles’ coaching staff, as Guthrie will be an assistant to Redick, while also earning the title of head of player development.
“The Los Angeles Lakers are promoting South Bay coach Zach Guthrie to a Lakers assistant coach and head of player development on JJ Redick’s staff, sources tell ESPN. Guthrie guided South Bay to the G League’s best record last season,” Shams Charania of ESPN reported in a post on X.
JJ Redick Hoping to Guide Lakers to New Heights in 2026-27 Campaign
GettyLakers head coach JJ Redick during a game against the Phoenix Suns in February 2026
Redick has done well to guide the Lakers to the playoffs during each of his first two seasons in town, but things are going to look understandably different this upcoming campaign. Sure, he still has stars like Reaves, Luka Doncic, and the newly acquired Walker Kessler at his disposal, but game planning around the absence of James is going to require some adjustments.
In a way, this is going to be the most important year of Redick’s young coaching career, which is why adding someone like Guthrie to his staff could end up being so important. More changes are likely to come for L.A. before the start of the upcoming season, but things are starting to come together for this team, which means Redick is probably already hard at work preparing for the Lakers’ return to the court.
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