It has been a fascinating rollercoaster for head coach JJ Redick in his first season at the helm of an NBA franchise with the Los Angeles Lakers. L.A. is 20-14, a better record than they had through 34 games last season, but it has been filled with significant highs and lows.
The Lakers have had a six-game win streak and they are currently 7-2 in their last nine games with a trade that certainly improves the roster. Redick has also gone through a 1-4 stretch and a 2-7 stretch, giving L.A. greater floors and ceilings than most NBA teams so far this season.
But Redick has maintained a level head through all of it and has helped the Lakers push through those hard times in favor of the higher ceilings. The Lakers head coach explained his mentality behind that, pulling on a popular movie for his inspiration.
“There’s a scene in ‘Band of Brothers’ where they’re in the trenches and one of the soldiers who is really scared asks the other guy, he says ‘How are you able to go out and fight and you don’t seem scared?’ And he says ‘It’s because I’m already dead.’ So when I took this job, I already died. I’m well aware of this profession, but it’s not even on my radar. I’m already dead.”
Redick’s mentality is certainly one that has been adopted by many head coaches over the years who are more than aware of the pitfalls of the job. But when it comes to this Lakers team, Redick knew he was not signing up for something perfect and has leaned into that.
“I’ll reiterate something that I believe I said in this very room prior to the Philadelphia game coming off that road trip when we lost four of five and we were 4-4. I signed up for the hard stuff. I didn’t sign up for the easy stuff. I enjoy problem solving. I enjoy the hell out of coaching. So it’s not one thing that led to another. It’s all part of the process and journey of trying to become a good basketball team and hopefully a great basketball team.”
The Lakers being on an upswing currently makes this mentality a little easier to swallow, but Redick has been steady regardless of what is happening on the court so far this season. And while it’s almost certain that the Lakers will have another negative stretch at some point, it’s comforting to know that the person in charge is calm through the storm.
JJ Redick doesn’t care about criticism from Charles Barkley
JJ Redick has found ways to effectively communicate with his players and they’ve in turn responded on the floor. Prior to becoming the Lakers’ head coach, Redick hosted his own podcast and served as an analyst on ESPN where he took opportunities to have honest conversations about the game of basketball at large.
Recently, Redick chimed in on the state of the NBA and how the game is currently covered. Redick lamented how some media members try to push the narrative that every team plays the same and that the league is a terrible product. Redick’s comments didn’t go over well with people like TNT’s Charles Barkley, who fired back with his own criticisms for the Los Angeles coach.
Prior to the game against the Atlanta Hawks, Redick acknowledged he heard Barkley’s comments though didn’t have much of a reaction.
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