Michael Kay called out JJ Redick Tuesday for using foul language during his introduction as the Los Angeles Lakers head coach, but the veteran broadcaster was shrewd enough to begin his commentary with a disclaimer.
The Michael Kay Show played audio from the Lakers press conference Monday, where Redick used the F word not once, but twice.
“I’m going to be the old guy on the lawn … and maybe I am sometimes,” the New York Yankees broadcaster said. “What exactly has happened to the coarsening of our society where a guy who went to Duke, a bright guy, just drops an F-bomb on live TV?
“Is that OK now? Is that OK? So maybe the FCC should change all these rules, too. … and it’s not just JJ Redick, but this is a man of authority right now. People use the F word like it’s nothing now.”
“What exactly has happened to the coarsening of our society where a guy who went to Duke, a bright guy, just drops an f-bomb on live TV?” Michael Kay on JJ Redick pic.twitter.com/kcfP7LosE6
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 25, 2024
When a reporter at the press conference asked Redick what he thought about misconceptions some people might have of him, he let his filter slip a couple of times.
“It’s been really interesting. However, I really don’t have a great answer for your question because I really don’t give a f***, honestly,” Redick said. “I want to coach the Lakers. I want to coach the team. I don’t want to dispel anything. I want to become a great coach in the NBA and I want to win championships and I want my players to maximize their careers. That’s what I f***** care about.”
JJ Redick was asked what misconceptions about himself he’s looking forward to dispelling as the Lakers head coach:
“It’s a valid question and I’ve certainly heard everything. It’s been a really interesting six weeks or so just in terms of being part of the engagement farming… pic.twitter.com/PZkXJb3Qo9
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 24, 2024
In Redick’s defense, Rachel Nichols reported Tuesday on FS1’s Undisputed that the new coach didn’t realize the press conference was being simulcast on radio and TV. Still, some would argue that language is not appropriate even in a closed session with reporters.
In an ideal world, people would hear Kay’s remarks, say, “He’s absolutely right!” and everyone would watch their language. In reality, the F-bomb has unfortunately become a fact of life, on live TV, in songs, on social media, in public. Just in the past couple of weeks, LIV Golf star Jon Rahm dropped the F-bomb during a live broadcast because a drone irritated him; Philadelphia Phillies star Nick Castellanos told an umpire he needed to “f****** speak up” during a game; and Charles Barkley said a hockey player was “f****** amazing” during an ESPN interview (he quickly apologized).
But Kay is fighting the good fight — even if, by his own admission, he sounds like “that old man” talking about the issue.
“There are different levels of media,” Kay said. “So if you want to curse on a podcast, right — and everybody does — it’s because that person that’s listening has chosen to listen to that podcast. But people that were watching the Lakers broadcast live … and he drops that F-bomb, I mean, again, I don’t want to be that old man, but I would ask JJ Redick, ‘Do you care that there might have been a 10- or 12-year-old listening?’ Cause I don’t want my kids to listen to something like that. I think a lot of society, they don’t care anymore.”
[The Michael Kay Show]
