After going into a bit of a slump by winning just one of their five-game road trip, JJ Redick has got the Los Angeles Lakers going again in this three-game winning streak.
One of the biggest talking points coming off the back of this winning streak the Lakers are on is, of course, LeBron James.
In the Lakers’ 128-123 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies, James recorded his third straight triple-double. James ended Wednesday night’s game with 35 points, 14 assists and 12 rebounds.
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Some other notable performances on the Lakers’ side came from rookie first-round pick Dalton Knecht having himself a breakout game with 19 points and Anthony Davis helping the Lakers comeback from a five-point deficit heading into the fourth quarter with 11 points.
Along with some great performances by several Lakers players, the win over the Grizzlies was another sign that first-time head coach Redick is not just cut out for this coaching thing, but could be great at it.
JJ Redick Has Key Intangible For Head Coaching
As Redick began his head coaching journey, ESPN reported that the former player went into the season with a few points of emphasis. It included respecting one another’s time. Playing for the same, common goal. Expecting elite execution night to night, no matter who is in or out of the lineup. Being efficient in everything, from shot selection from the players to time management from the coaches. Dominating the details, whether it’s the angle at which a screen is set on offense or the timing of blitzing a pick-and-roll on defense.
From his playing career and broadcasting career, everyone knows that JJ Redick understands the game at a high level and is intelligent. However, that isn’t the only thing required to be a great head coach in the NBA.
You also need the respect of your players, especially your stars. While we know that James respects Redick’s basketball IQ, there is a big difference between sitting down and talking about the game and being coached by the guy.
Lakers’ fans can be hopeful that Redick has garnered the respect of his players based on a couple of things that occurred versus the Grizzlies.
The first one took place at the end of the first quarter after James drained a three-pointer at the buzzer to give the Lakers a 12-point lead. As James was heading back to the bench, Redick took a moment to get on to James and Knecht on what seemed to be a missed assignment on defense.
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The other moment took place at the end of the game when the Lakers were looking to put away the Grizzlies. With 17 seconds to go in the game, the Lakers had a 126-120 lead and they decided to foul the Grizzlies to make them take free throws.
The reason this was a brilliant move by Redick is because most losing outcomes with that much time left in the game see the Grizzlies making multiple three-pointers. This exact scenario was ironically discussed by James and Redick on their podcast during last season’s playoffs.
The season is still extremely early, but it appears that the Los Angeles Lakers got a good one in JJ Redick.