It looks like JJ Redick has bigger things to worry about than feuding with Charles Barkley.
When Redick was asked Friday about Barkley's comments about the Lakers' midseason struggles, he opted out.
“I literally don’t care,” the Lakers coach said before the game against the Hawks. “I have other ideas, but I don't care.”
Barkley attacked Redick during Thursday's episode of “Inside the NBA,” calling him a “dead man walking” during his first year as the Lakers' coach.
“He said something about, ‘We’re the reason people don’t watch this crappy product we have,’ as if we were making a hundred $3 a night,” Barclay said. “JJ, I came for the King and you better not miss it because I can have you, brother.”
The Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer went on to say that Redick has not lived up to the level of other new Lakers coaches, referring to the success of former bench bosses Frank Vogel and Darvin Hamm.
“He came in there thinking: 'I can make this thing work,'” Barkley said. “Hell, you can! Put some makeup on that pig! The Lakers stink, man. Come on, man.”
Barkley's vile remarks stem from comments Redick made last month regarding the decline in NBA television ratings.
The Lakers coach pointed to basketball analysts as one possible reason behind the drop in ratings.
“If you were a casual fan and you told me every time I turned on the TV that the product was bad, I wouldn't watch the product,” Reddick said. “And that's actually what's happened over the last 10 to 15 years. I don't know why. It's not funny to me.”
Although not naming anyone in particular, Redick noted that “national partners” have contributed to the negativity surrounding the NBA, according to The Athletic.
The crew of TNT's “Inside the NBA” program expressed their dissatisfaction with the high number of three-pointers this season.
Before joining the Lakers, Redick worked as an analyst for ESPN and hosted a Basketball with LeBron James podcast.
Entering Friday, the Lakers had a 19-14 record, which was sixth in the Western Conference.
