JJ Redick’s first year as the Los Angeles Lakers’ head coach should be considered a success as he led the team to 50 wins and the third seed in the Western Conference.
Although Redick’s playoff debut as a coach went poorly, the Lakers clearly appreciated the job he did as they awarded him with a contract extension this summer. Redick still had three years left on the original four-year deal he signed, so this was a massive vote of confidence from the higher ups.
Heading into Year 2, Redick will have the benefit of more experience and continuity on his roster. Redick demanded that his players get into championship shape over the offseason, and the early results have been encouraging to say the least.
Gabe Vincent revealed he told Redick that it’ll be a positive if the team ends up hating him because of his conditioning drills.
“I told JJ about a week or two ago, I said, ‘If we all hate you, but we all have you collectively, that’s great.’ So as long as we’re together in it, obviously no one wants to run at the end of a long practice, but we know the goal we have set for ourselves and we know what we’re trying to do moving forward. And we all embraced it. We all got the run in and we all got better for it,” Vincent said.
The organization’s desire for the players to get into “championship shape” wasn’t just aimed at Luka Doncic who took the goal to heart and transformed his body. The rest of the roster, including Vincent, needed to work on their conditioning to endure the rigors of an 82-game regular season and a deep playoff run.
Vincent is often considered a trade piece because of his expiring deal, but the veteran guard is valuable off the bench as a point of attack defender. He’s also a solid lead guard who can initiate the offense and knock down an open 3-pointer when spotting up.
Redick should have more versatility with his rotation and it’ll be interesting to see how he slots everyone in.
JJ Redick says Lakers will be cautious with LeBron James’ ramp up for Year 23
While JJ Redick is heading into Year 2 as a head coach, LeBron James will be making history as he is set to play in Year 23. James is a little banged up for the starting of training camp and Redick said he and the Lakers will be cautious with his ramp up.
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