As the Los Angeles Lakers get ready to take on the Oklahoma City Thunder, head coach JJ Redick is already planting some seeds with the officials.
The narrative surrounding the Thunder the last couple of years is that they are allowed to play more physically than other teams without getting called for fouls. Whether he was being serious or facetious, Redick agrees that the Thunder often defend without fouling.
“They don’t foul, so the whistles aren’t gonna be there. You accept that going in. They don’t foul,” Redick said after practice on Thursday.
Redick is kind of right as the Thunder had the best defense in the league this season despite committing the seventh-least fouls at 19 per game. They have a lot of physical defenders like Lu Dort, Cason Wallace and Alex Caruso who frustrate opponents without fouling.
While Redick seemed to be talking tongue-in-cheek about the Thunder not fouling, he knows what the Lakers are up against in this series.
“You’re talking about a team that is top five in every category that’s disruptive based,” Redick said. “Steals, blocks, turnovers forced, all that stuff. And they don’t foul. They somehow do all of that without fouling, which is one of the most remarkable things, I think, in NBA history.”
Another Lakers head coach in Phil Jackson used to plant similar seeds with officials before and during playoff series’ as that can often make a difference. So while Redick does have a lot of respect for the Thunder, his comments are certainly two-fold as he attempts to give his team any advantage he can.
JJ Redick: Thunder are one of greatest teams ever
Ahead of their matchup, Redick shared high praise for the Thunder and where they rank among the greatest teams in NBA history.
“We saw a stat in our morning meeting this morning of teams that have had back-to-back, or even more than that 10 or more better net ratings in consecutive seasons. You’re talking about the 95-96 Bulls, the 96-97 Bulls and then the 15-17 Warriors,” Redick said.
“You’re literally talking about two of the greatest teams of all-time. I said to a bunch of people yesterday off-site that were talking about this series to me I said, ‘The Thunder is one of the greatest teams ever in NBA history.’ That’s just the reality. They are. They’re that good. I think our guys recognize that and respect that and we know what kind of task we have in front of us.”
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