An interesting wrinkle to the Los Angeles Lakers preseason game against the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday was the head coaches JJ Redick and Doc Rivers. Rivers notably coached Redick during his tenure as a player with the L.A. Clippers.
Now several years removed from that, Redick and Rivers’ relationship has been on the rocks. During his time with ESPN last season, Redick went on “First Take” and threw criticism at his former coach by sharing that Rivers never takes accountability for his team’s struggles.
Since becoming head coach of the Lakers, Redick is going to have to coach against Rivers twice a year during the regular season. While it could make for interesting theatrics, Redick shared that he does not have any ill will towards his Rivers, via Dave McMenamin of ESPN:
“I don’t carry beef with people,” Redick said before the game. “And I’m not going to get into the history of Doc and I’s relationship right now. And I probably won’t ever. He’s fine in my book.”
During his time in the media, Redick talked about his time with the Clippers and wished they won a championship. But, looking back at that “First Take” segment, Redick wishes he handled it better in regards to his tone:
“After that ‘First Take’ appearance, there were a number of conversations that I had with people — both at ESPN and within the league — that provided a good amount of perspective whether I had stayed in the media or whether I had pursued a coaching job,” Redick said Thursday. “I will say this again, [I] regret my tone in that case. I’ve owned that and I regret my tone.”
When talking about Rivers, Redick got animated and used a frustrated tone towards how the now Bucks coach shifts the blame. At this point, the 15-year NBA veteran needs to focus on bigger things, like trying to make the Lakers championship contenders again.
While they still might not see eye-to-eye, it is commendable for Redick to own up to his mistake. After getting hired by the Lakers, he preached holding players and himself accountable, so this is the first step in doing so.
In not involving anything in the present day and this Lakers team, it showcases the type of person Redick is and knows that he is not a perfect person but is focused on the task at hand.
Gabe Vincent gave game ball to JJ Redick after first win
After dropping the first two games of their preseason schedule, the Lakers were searching for a win on Sunday. Fortunately, L.A. got it done and to celebrate JJ Redick’s first win as head coach, which came against Doc Rivers and the Bucks, Gabe Vincent gave him the game ball.
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