Given how much trolling the NBA world did when the Los Angeles Lakers missed out on Dan Hurley, you'd think the franchise was dead in the water with JJ Redick becoming their head coach instead.
Redick played 15 years in the pros, learned under Mike Krzyzewski at Duke, and has been labeled a "basketball genius" by Lakers guard Austin Reaves among many others. This notion that the Lakers are dead, and the Celtics are about to reassert their dominance in that long-standing rivalry after their latest championship? As Lee Corso famously says, "Not so fast, my friend!"
You couldn't have scripted a much better opening press conference for Redick on Monday. That was the beauty of it. Wasn't scripted. There were a ton of major takeaways from Redick's introduction to the LA media. One of the most notable: He is finished podcasting for what he hopes is a long time, save for an eventual farewell video sometime this offseason. So you can put to bed any narrative that LeBron James is the only reason Redick got the Lakers' vacant gig.
https://twitter.com/FOS/status/1805350588323901932
https://twitter.com/BleacherReport/status/1805348318371045750
My favorite highlight, though, was the very real moment Redick had when he preemptively quashed any suspicion that proving outsiders wrong is a driving catalyst for why he got into coaching.
https://twitter.com/MarkG_Medina/status/1805349765397491905
Refreshing, too, was how self-deprecating Redick was at times, in particular when he addressed his lack of coaching experience and the Lakers' aforementioned pursuit of Hurley.
https://twitter.com/NBATV/status/1805343352642052209
https://twitter.com/CBSSports/status/1805343837058990503
If I were a Lakers player, I'd be pretty fired up right now. GM Rob Pelinka discussed how Redick's extensive NBA background and keen understanding of player development were critical factors in his candidacy.
Is it an edgelord contrarian take to believe Redick will be a huge success in this job? What exactly about his background suggests that he won't succeed? Not only will he have a clear plan in place for whatever remains of the LeBron era, but he's eager to coach up their other superstar, Anthony Davis.
https://twitter.com/mcten/status/1805342072796496103
https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1805352083337494638
The Western Conference is so stacked. The Celtics just nudged ahead of the Lakers with their 18th championship. LeBron is entering his 22nd season with limited resources available to the Lake Show to help him. This job has no shortage of challenges or sky-high expectations. Above all else, based on this presser, it's clear that Redick isn't running from any of those.
Whether Redick succeeds or fails, the NBA landscape makes his tenure ripe for drama, intrigue, and an injection of life into a Lakers organization that badly needs a new direction in leadership. Next NBA season is about to be among the most exciting of my lifetime.
https://twitter.com/Lakers/status/1805326754007204140
