J.J. Redick, the new coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, has denied an allegation that he called a Black woman a racial slur while he attended Duke University.
A fellow Duke alum, author Halleemah Nash, posted the allegation on X in a post that has now been viewed more than 25 million times.
“I’ve only been called the N word to my face by a white man once in my life and it was on the campus of Duke University while I was doing work with the basketball team,” Nash, who founded a start-up to encourage diversity in the workplace, wrote. “Today he was named the new head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers. What a world.”
Redick’s representatives immediately denied the allegation, though the Lakers have not commented.
“No, it never happened,” a spokesperson for the coach told TMZ.
In a follow-up post, Nash said she believes Redick has likely grown since he attended Duke from 2002 to 2006.
“I’m a believer that we all have space to grow — especially from our college-level maturity,” she wrote. “We live in a world where these exchanges happen and the intersection of race and privilege and lack of accountability all collided.”
This isn’t the first time the former NBA star has made news for alleged racial slurs. In 2018, Redick issued an apology after using a racial slur in a video for Chinese NBA fans. He claimed the slur was an accident, noting that he was “tongue-tied.”
Redick was a two-time All-American at Duke, earning Player of the Year honors in his final season. After a 15-year NBA career, the former shooting guard embarked on a successful media career, hosting the “Mind the Game” podcast with Lebron James.
“Sitting in this seat, I know what the expectations are … Lakers fans [are] some of the most passionate around the world, and the expectation is a championship,” Redick said at his introductory press conference. “It’s my job … to deliver a championship-caliber team. That’s what I signed up for.”
• Liam Griffin can be reached at lgriffin@washingtontimes.com.
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