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Los Angeles Lakers coach JJ Redick used the team’s three-day break to take a closer look at its 11-2 start.
Before Friday’s practice, Redick walked the team through a 21-page review that focused on what has worked so far and where the Lakers still need to improve, despite sitting atop the Western Conference.
The Lakers entered the break after winning all three games on their latest road trip, capped by Wednesday’s 123-112 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.
Redick said the coaching and analytics staff organized the review around the identities the team wants to establish on both ends of the floor.
“We filtered through our offensive stuff based on our identities of who we want to be offensively: Organized, unselfish, advantage-based. And then we went to our defense, and our three identities: Organized, physical as [expletive], and relentless,” Redick said, according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.
“We’ve done that for the last two and a half seasons. Everything that we present to the team lines up with who we’re trying to be,” he added.
Redick also made clear where the defense needs to improve:
“We know we want to be a top-10 defense. We know we are not going to be able to do that unless we become better than a bottom-10 transition team and better than a bottom-10 defensive rebounding team.”
Redick’s approach drew plenty of reaction from Lakers supporters.
“Our coach is a psycho worker/grinder… love it,” one fan wrote.
Another took a shot at former Lakers coach Darvin Ham: “Darvin Ham would slept for 3 days.”
“This is the most JJ thing I’ve ever heard,” a third fan remarked.
One fan offered a longer take:
“He’s changed the franchise. Him valuing analytics and making it a focus has paid real dividends. Beyond basketball I think in sports we underrate how a coach can impact the overall approach of a franchise/club. Even if they don’t have control they can push the upper management.”
“The Lakers got a real one in JJ,” a fan added.
Another fan took the joke in a different direction: “What he means is, he asked ChatGPT to do it for him.”
The Lakers will have a chance to apply the review Sunday against the Phoenix Suns. Austin Reaves is considered day-to-day with a left heel bruise after leaving Wednesday’s game against Milwaukee, while Luka Dončić is expected to play after tweaking his ankle late in the same game.
Redick said Dončić was “fine” and that he expected him to be available in Phoenix.