JJ Redick was officially introduced as the 29th head coach in Los Angeles Lakers franchise history on Monday. The first-time head coach will have the opportunity to coach two of the league’s top players in Anthony Davis and LeBron James. He shared his plans for the two superstars at his introductory press conference, stating:
Anthony and I have already had a conversation a week ago about some ideas, both offensively and defensively. I think both of us felt really comfortable going forward with that sort of as the base starting point of how he’s going to play on this team. One of the things I brought up with him is just the idea of him as a hub. There’s a bunch of guys at the five position in the NBA that sort of operate in that way and I don’t know that he’s been used in that way and sort of maximize all of his abilities. That’s a simple thing with him.
With LeBron, you have to certainly get buy in and talk to him about how he wants to play. Him and I have joked about this, but he shot over 40% from three this year. I want him shooting threes. He’s going to have his three or four busts every game where he gets out in transition and does things that no one at his age should ever be able to do, but he does it. It’s really just figuring out in the half-court, putting him in different spots both as a scorer and a facilitator.
While Redick does not have previous coaching experience, he is among the most respected young minds in basketball. The former Duke Blue Devils star spent four seasons playing under Mike Krzyzewski, winning the 2006 national college Player of the Year.
He spent the following 15 seasons in the NBA, becoming the first active player to launch a podcast in 2016. Since retiring, he has served as an analyst at ESPN, quickly working his way up to the lead broadcast team. Redick has also hosted The Old Man And The Three and Mind the Game podcasts, the latter of which was hosted with LeBron.
JJ Redick reveals defensive expectations after being named Lakers head coach
JJ Redick made it clear that he is planning to compete for championships at his introductory press conference. Speaking to Steve Mason and John Ireland of ESPN 710 Los Angeles, he shared his expectations on the less flashy side of the ball, stating:
We have Anthony Davis. He’s a top-five defensive player in the NBA. He’s one of the five best defenders in the NBA. I think, historically, if you have one of those guys, you should have a top-five or top-ten defense.
Redick added that he believes there are minor adjustments that can turn the Lakers defense to a top-ten unit. Los Angeles had a middle-of-the-pack defensive unit last season despite Anthony Davis being named to the All-Defensive First Team.
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