The Lakers are hoping the coaching change will be enough to turn their fortunes around from last season, when they finished with the eighth-best record in the West and lost in the first round.
JJ Redick is largely taking over the same lineup as his predecessor, Darvin Ham, but plans to change a few elements.
Redick gave some insight into how the Lakers can play better an off-season appearance on ESPN’s “The Lowe Post,” sharing how he wants to utilize LeBron James and move emphasis points heading into the 2024-25 season.
Here’s what we learned about Redick’s plan and how it could make a difference for the team.
What JJ Redick’s Vision Means for the Lakers
JJ Redick’s starting lineup makes more sense than Darvin Ham’s
The Lakers tried 19 different starting compositions last season, losing time early in the year by starting Taurean Prince before eventually settling back into the group of D’Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimua, LeBron James and Anthony Davis that led them to the Western Conference Finals in 2023.
That roster improved to 22-10 after Hachimura was inserted into the starting lineup on Feb. 3. That equates to a 56-win pace, just one shy of the No. 1-seeded Thunder and nine more than the 47 Los Angeles actually finished with.
Redick cited that closing statement to Zach Lowe, noting that the Lakers will play that starting lineup from Game 1. That change alone should immediately give Los Angeles an improvement over last year’s standing.
JJ Redick Wants to Use LeBron James More as a Screener
James is deadly with the ball in his hands, but Redick doesn’t necessarily want him to start with the ball. Instead, Redick hopes to use James off the ball through screening actions.
“It’s funny because I think when people hear that about LeBron playing off the ball, it doesn’t mean he’s not going to get the ball,” Redick told Lowe. “LeBron is one of the smartest players, and I think using him as a screen and finding ways to get him the ball in specific areas of the court where he can be a facilitator and a scorer, that’s what I mean by being off the ball.”
One of the specific places James will be used is at the elbow. James already said it that when he catches the ball at elbow level, “it’s not up to me to score, I see everything.”
James has been a great passer from that elbow area in previous years. It gives him the angles to throw a pass anywhere on the field.
Feeding the ball to James at the elbows could also lead to more half-cuts, which Redick has said is one of his favorite plays. It could lead the Lakers to play a more movement-oriented style of offense than the Warriors, with cutters diving toward the basket and shooters breaking away for more 3-pointers while James and Davis facilitate from the high post.
JJ Redick to create stronger analytical advantages
The Lakers had an average offense last season. ranked #15 in offensive ranking29th in offensive rebounds and 28th in three-point attempts. Expect all of those rankings to rise under Redick.
“There’s going to be a fair amount of movement,” Redick told Lowe. “The shot profile will improve, I hope. We talked about ways to get more touches in the paint. We talked about ways to shoot more three-pointers. We talked about the breathing room you have to give certain guys with mid-range shots, whether it’s in the post or isolation.”
Redick has an additional three-point threat in rookie Dalton Knecht, who he called a “top 1 percent shooter” and would have “a chance to earn a spot in the rotation.”
In addition to playing Knecht, it appears Redick is considering replacing many of those mid-range players with three-pointers. Playing more Hachimura, who shot 42.2 percent from three last season, should help significantly.
The Lakers will also focus more on offensive rebounding. “We’re really going to emphasize offensive rebounding and corner collisions,” Redick said.
Corner crashing is a philosophy in which corner shooters dive toward the basket to seek offensive rebounds. Hachimura should be the primary beneficiary of this change in strategy — he was a decent offensive rebounder with the Wizards and has good athleticism to grab contested rebounds. He saw his numbers drop under Ham, but he should see them rise again with more freedom to make corner crashes.
Redick noted that those strategies would be very different from last year’s team.
“I’m not comparing it to any previous coach or system, but those are some of the things that will look similar to the team I coach,” he told Lowe.
These changes make perfect sense. The Lakers have talent, and getting them to play a more modern style of basketball should help them win more this season.
