(JJ Redick’s post, source: X)
New Lakers coach JJ Redick dropped a bombshell in his introductory press conference last week, revealing, “I have never coached in the NBA before.”
After drawing laughs from the room full of reporters at the blatant admission, Redick masterfully answered questions by leaning on his relevant experience: He boasts a 15-year NBA career, hosts multiple basketball podcasts, and most recently worked as an analyst for ESPN.
This hire will be the franchise’s fourth head coach in the last five years. Redick, 40, shared his plans to lead the Lakers back to championship contention in the 47-minute press conference by stressing the importance of culture. When asked what culture means, Redick explained, “Culture is two things: it’s how a group interacts with each other, and it’s the things a group prioritizes.” Here’s what we learned about Redick’s strategy going into next season:
Competitive Culture
Redick emphasized that cultivating a championship-winning team starts with building a competitive culture, which should be the team’s foundation. While he wants his players and staff to think about the competition daily, Redick said, “The pursuit of greatness can’t be miserable.”
In other words, players should enjoy the grind of getting better. Redick then took responsibility for creating this culture to maximize each player’s potential.
The Lakers, who finished seventh in the Western Conference last season, will need more than a mind shift to transform from a play-in team to a championship contender. An integral component of establishing a competitive culture is maintaining a spirit of accountability.
Driving Accountability
Additionally, Redick believes in establishing standards early and embracing conflict. He emphasized, “Throughout an NBA season, it’s okay to have internal conflict. You have to go about confronting those conflicts and hold people accountable.”
Redick demonstrates what many leaders are missing: accountability. Holding a role player accountable for missing a defensive rotation is one thing. What if a star player blows a defensive assignment?
To garner respect from his locker room, Redick must set the same expectations for rookies and veterans. Playing favorites doesn’t create a winning culture because it decreases morale and can be cancerous to locker rooms. The Lakers have a bright future if Redick can follow through on holding his team accountable.
Setting a Vision
Throughout the press conference, Redick highlighted the importance of creating a vision and getting “buy-in” from his team—i.e., getting players to commit to their offensive and defensive roles.
Redick explained that he can have a vision for how he would like to use a player like LeBron James or Anthony Davis, but that plan doesn’t matter if he can’t get his players to commit to his vision.
If Redick can incorporate player input, he has a higher chance of executing his vision of winning in his first year of coaching in the NBA. He also specified that he’s already spoken with multiple players, like AD and Rui Hachimura. Keeping an open line of communication with players will be instrumental in Redick’s success.
Fostering Innovation
Furthermore, Redick discussed how the game is evolving. “One of the things in coaching that I think you have to be is adaptable. You have to be adaptable to your roster. You have to be adaptable in game-planning against your opponent,” said Redick, highlighting his understanding of where the Lakers fell short this year.
He understands that team success depends on adaptability. What worked in one NBA era won’t necessarily translate to success in another. Redick divulged how he’ll use math to inform his decision-making.
He referenced LeBron’s career-high 41% three-point shooting percentage from last season to illustrate why he wants LeBron to shoot more from beyond the arc. It’s important to note that embracing data analytics is not new and hasn’t always yielded positive results, especially concerning the three-point revolution.
Just ask the 2018 Houston Rockets, who shot themselves out of the playoffs with 27 consecutive missed threes. If Redick adapts his game plan in real-time, Laker fans shouldn’t be worried. Data analytics and Redick’s love of math may give die-hard fans the lineups they have long dreamed of.
While his detractors are quick to point out his lack of coaching experience, Redick didn’t duck from any questions about his unconventional resume. (After all, he has coached a 4th-grade travel team.) He provided great insights into his leadership style while sharing his plans to return this historic franchise to winning form. Laker fans should be optimistic that Redick, with his unwavering confidence in his coaching abilities, has the right mentality for the job. He’s just as much of a straight shooter off the court as he was on the court—and, with time, can prove to be the coach the Lakers needed all along.