Mike Krzyzewski reveals key reason JJ Redick will succeed as Lakers head coach

When the Los Angeles Lakers parted ways with Darvin Ham, former Duke Blue Devils head coach Mike Krzyzewski became one of the most important figures for the organization. Krzyzewski quickly emerged as a trusted confidant for Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka, leaving his fingerprints all over the franchise's search for a new head coach.

As Los Angeles prepares for its first season under first-year head coach JJ Redick, Krzyzewski is revealing why he endorsed his former player for the job.

Redick has never coached above the youth level, which has been the most consistent talking point among Lakers fans and critics this offseason. He produced a unique playing career, however, and was heralded for his educational approach to his career as an analyst.

In a recent appearance on The Herd with Colin Cowherd, Krzyzewski expressed his belief that Redick's unique experiences will enable him to uniquely connect with the Lakers as head coach.

For those who can't watch the video, Krzyzewski said the following:

"JJ is amazingly competitive. Is prepared as well as any player that I coached at Duke. He's smart, he's confident, and he understands the game. Having 15 years of being a pro, he has empathy for the guy trying to make it , when he was trying to make it and for the veteran who's still trying to make it. He was never a superstar in the NBA, but he was certainly a superstar and the National Player of the Year when he played in college. So I think he has empathy for what a roster would look like. He certainly understands the pro game and he desperately wants to be a coach."

That's high praise from one of the greatest coaches in basketball history, especially considering he's coached an abundance of Duke legends turned NBA players—a list that includes multi-time All-Stars such as Elton Brand, Grant Hill, Kyrie Irving, and Zion Williamson.

Mike Krzyzewski: Empathy will enable JJ Redick to succeed with Lakers

Redick played 15 NBA seasons, scoring 12,028 points and burying 1,950 three-point field goals on 41.5 percent shooting from beyond the arc. He ranks No. 20 in NBA history in three-point field goals made and 18th in efficiency from distance.

In addition to thriving in an area that has come to define the modern era of the NBA, Redick traveled a unique career path.

Before he became one of the best three-point shooters in NBA history, Redick was a household name as the superstar player on Krzyzewski's Duke team between 2002 and 2006. He was one of the most hated athletes in America, receiving endless vitriol on each opposing college campus he visited.

It's one of the most intriguing aspects of what Redick brings to the table as a coach who can uniquely relate to LeBron James, who has spent the better part of 21 years in the polarizing position of the face of the NBA.

Furthermore, Redick was the proverbial late bloomer in the NBA. He didn't become a full-time starter until his seventh season in the Association, first averaged double-figure scoring marks in his fifth year in the league, and set his career-best scoring average just two months shy of his 35th birthday.

As Krzyzewski mentioned, that gives Redick a distinctive quality as a head coach: The ability to relate to players in just about every situation.

For the superstars, Redick knows what it's like to carry the weight of a fanbase's expectations on his shoulders. For the role players, he knows how hard it can be to simply crack the rotation, let alone the starting lineup. He also has first-hand knowledge of how important shooters are to a team's success.

That doesn't necessarily guarantee that Redick will be successful as head coach of the Lakers, but it certainly sheds light on what Krzyzewski and Pelinka valued when discussing his candidacy.

In an offseason that's been as divisive as the hiring itself, it's hard to question the value of those characteristics.