When the Los Angeles Lakers signed Cam Reddish to a minimum contract, it was unclear how he would fare or fit in. Despite his immense potential when drafted in 2019, Reddish struggled to cement a role in stops with the Atlanta Hawks, Portland Trail Blazers and New York Knicks.
One of the knocks on Reddish heading into this season was that he gave inconsistent effort on the defensive end, only focusing on the other side of the ball. But with the Lakers, that hasn’t been the case as head coach Darvin Ham has gotten him to buy in and become the team’s primary guard defender, where he has thrived.
That effort is not lost on Tom Thibodeau, who praised Reddish prior to the Lakers hosting the Knicks on Monday night.
“He’s played well,” Thibodeau said about his former player. “The first thing is to embrace the role, and I think he’s done a really good job for them.”
Reddish has undoubtedly embraced the role of defensive stopper within the Lakers starting lineup. Impressive quickness for his size has allowed him to really bother opposing guards. Reddish’s 1.5 steals per game are tied for the team lead and represent a career high.
Reddish has not allowed shooting struggles to affect his effort on defense, which has been key to his success.
Thibodeau is well known as a defensive-minded coach, so he surely recognizes the commitment Reddish has shown on that side of the ball. As he noted, the first thing is to embrace the role and perhaps that is something Reddish failed to do in his previous stops.
But that effort and commitment on defense are what has pushed Reddish into the Lakers starting lineup and allowed for more balanced lineups for Ham this season. His shooting should come around eventually, but his defense has been invaluable for the Lakers and will continue to keep him as a big part of this rotation.
Cam Reddish asked for honest communication
Perhaps another reason Reddish has been so good for the Lakers is his relationship with Ham. This is something that began even before the wing signed with the Lakers, as Ham revealed that Reddish simply asked for the coach to be straight forward with him.
“Before we signed Cam, he and I had several conversations,” Ham said recently. “Once we signed him, he told me, Coach, just be straight up and clear with me. Whatever you need me to do, whatever I’m not doing, just shoot straight. I said, oh, you got the right guy. Cam is phenomenal.”
Ham added that he told Reddish to embrace the work and the environment the Lakers have created and the would flourish. It’s safe to say Ham was right on that front.
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