Heat legend cautions Lakers against hiring JJ Redick

ESPN analyst JJ Redick has reportedly emerged as the frontrunner to succeed Darvin Ham as the next Lakers head coach.

While some have endorsed Redick for the high-profile job, retired Heat player Udonis Haslem believes the Lakers could cause friction within the locker room by hiring the retired sharpshooter. During his appearance on Tuesday's "NBA Today" on ESPN, Haslem cited Redick's friendship with James — the two run a podcast together — as a reason why the Purple & Gold should refrain from hiring Redick.

"If it's JJ [Redick], it's going to be a cynical locker room," Haslem said "You're gonna have guys saying, 'Coach going to do a podcast after the game with LeBron.' You're gonna have a cynical locker room of guys who are gonna side-eye everything JJ says, because they're gonna wonder, 'Is this JJ's message or LeBron's message?'"

Haslem then endorsed Heat assistant Chris Quinn as his top choice for the job, citing Quinn's experience of coaching James as an assistant during their years in Miami.

Quinn, Redick, James Borrego, Sam Cassell, Kenny Atkinson, David Adelman, Micah Nori and Sean Sweeney are reportedly on the shortlist of candidates for the Lakers job. According to several insiders, the Lakers intend to go through a lengthy process before finalizing Ham's successor.