With this being JJ Redick’s first ever head coaching job at any level, there are a lot of questions surrounding the Los Angeles Lakers about his preferred style of play, systems he plans to put in place, and his overall demeanor and style as a head coach.
In terms of what he expects from the Lakers as a whole, Redick wasted no time in looking to set that tone as he held a meeting with the entire team the night before training camp kicked off in order to establish the team’s identity.
“It was good. The reason I did that, one of the things that I’m big on is efficiency,” Redick said following the Lakers’ first practice. I haven’t been around LeBron a ton, but I know that’s big for him as well. And I think as any NBA player will tell you, they really value their time. And I did not want to take time today to have some long meetings. So I used last night as a meeting to just set the tone for who we’re gonna be on both ends of the floor and the things that we’re gonna value as a group. That’s really what last night was about.”
These first few weeks will be absolutely crucial for Redick in terms of establishing that culture with this Lakers team. Every player knowing what is expected of them both individually and as a team overall goes a long way and LeBron James understands exactly what the goal was of this meeting.
“Just setting the standard, setting the course of action and how we expect to play every single night — no matter who is playing,” LeBron said. “It’s not about who is playing, it’s about what we want to do every night. We want to play the same way every single night.”
Third-year guard Max Christie also sees the value in Redick’s opening meeting, feeling that this will help build a foundation and allow the Lakers to be more coherent as a team.
“It was kind of the first time that we all really got together as a team in one setting,” Christie added. “JJ and the staff had a big presentation for us about kind of like team values, ground rules … so we can kind of wrap everybody around an identity that we want to have as a team so we’re one coherent unit.”
The journey for the Lakers is just beginning, but Redick is looking to ensure that everyone begins this on the same page, which should only help the new coach lead this team to where it wants to be.
JJ Redick envisions 9-man rotation for Lakers
Something else that JJ Redick has already made clear is that he plans to have a more fluid and shortened rotation than was seen with the Lakers in previous years. While there will be plenty of guys battling for minutes, the new coach plans on limiting the rotation to nine players.
“There’s a lot of guys that are gonna have a chance to play,” Redick said. “Like I said, I think beyond the obvious guys, Gabe Vincent, Jarred Vanderbilt when he’s healthy, Jaxson Hayes, Max (Christie), Cam (Reddish), Jalen (Hood-Schifino), I know I’m forgetting someone, it’s been a very long day. But there’s a lot of guys that are gonna compete for spots. I’ve always sort of envisioned a nine-man rotation in the regular season. So there’s definitely some competition for that ninth spot.”
Rookie Dalton Knecht was a player Redick forgot to mention as was big man Christian Wood, though he is currently injured and won’t be ready for the start of the season.
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