The Los Angeles Lakers‘ biggest move this summer was overhauling their coaching staff. Out went Darvin Ham, and in came JJ Redick as the new head coach, along with veteran assistants Scotty Brooks, Nate McMillan and Lindsey Harding.
While Redick had a long and impressive career, and was a rising star in the media world, he had no prior coaching experience. So why would the Lakers, with all of their expectations, hand him the reins for the last few years of the LeBron James era?
Lakers owner Jeanie Buss shared some insight into the decision on Thursday during an appearance with local Los Angeles radio show “Petros and Money.”
“We wanted to kind of think a different way,” Buss said. “Really, he’s got a vision. I’m not comfortable talking about the basketball stuff, but we were looking for a candidate that would bring something different and really invest in developing young players. JJ is the right person for us. Again, I just want to work to really speak for itself, so I don’t want to hype it and say it’s gonna be a home run. We have to give him time to establish what he wants to establish.
“I’m really impressed with his staff. Right now, it’s not mandatory for the players to come in and practice but players are coming in and working out. The coaching staff with Nate McMillan and Scotty Brooks, there’s a lot of experience that will be there for him to make that adjustment to being a head coach. Certainly a 12-year career in the league, he’s got a lot of experience. He knows what this league is about and I think he’ll be a great leader.”
Buss’ comments are notable, not just for this season, but the future.
The Lakers were, in some ways, stuck in the stone age under Darvin Ham. They were fourth in post-up possessions per game last season (7.3), 28th in 3-point attempts (31.4), 29th in offensive rebounding rate (24.4) and finished 15th in offensive rating (115.4). Redick has already guaranteed that will change.
“I’m going to use math,” Redick said during his introductory press conference earlier this summer. He wants his team to shoot more 3s, crash the offensive glass and run more organized sets. All told, his analytically-driven philosophy is totally different than what the Lakers have had in recent years.
Looking to the future, player development is another key for Redick. His commitment to that aspect of the game is why the Lakers have confidence that he can be their leader now, and after LeBron James retires.
“The pursuit of greatness can’t be miserable,” Redick said. “Every day that somebody walks in this building, they have to enjoy it. I think part of being a coach, right, is, like, ‘Can I maximize each player?’ That helps maximize the group. And does everybody in the building, not just the players and staff, does everybody in the building enjoy coming to work every day? That’s sort of on me to create that culture.”
Whether Redick will be a successful coach remains to be seen, but it’s clear that he, and the organization, have a vision in place.
