JJ Redick continues to defy the expectations of what the 2024-25 NBA season can hold for the Los Angeles Lakers. One key aspect of how the year continues to develop for the Lakers could end up defining the early tenure of Redick in Los Angeles.
The Lakers head coach took the job with one of the most storied organizations in the NBA having no previous coaching experience. It was a major talking point for some. Redick has quickly proven more than qualified for the position, confidently silencing his doubters of that regard.
The Lakers entered the year with modest expectations. Under Redick, they rose to the status of fringe contenders with the team that was led by LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
Los Angeles struck gold when they acquired Luka Doncic from the Dallas Mavericks. However, many believed it put the Lakers in a position where this season essentially became a write-off, with the Lakers needing to properly regroup in the offseason. While Rob Pelinka and the front office will surely take the opportunity to bolster the roster in the offseason, Redick is coaching this team to a point where the 2024-25 campaign projects to be far from a dismissible season.
How Redick and the Lakers thrust themselves into elite company
Ryen Russillo chimed in on his podcast about how incredible this defensive run has been from the Lakers. The analyst shared similar feelings as to how quickly the narrative is evolving in Los Angeles around the promise of this year's campaign.
It was not too long ago that the topic of the Lakers' improving defense was tackled on Lake Show Life. The key discussion point was the trend involving the majority of past NBA champions holding a top 10 defense throughout the regular season.
At the time that was written, it was discussed how the Lakers had the top defensive rating over the last 15 games played. That is still true today.
The Lakers' defensive rating of 107.2 holds as the top defensive rating in basketball over the most recent 15 games for every team in the association. The Cleveland Cavaliers are second with a rating of 109.2.
Los Angeles ranks 13th overall during 2024-25, with a rating of 112.7. Some onlookers may be looking at the product and wondering how the Lakers have improved so much with the specific group of players they have. To those people, this enigma is tough to understand.
For Redick, it has been a case of leaning into his team's strengths on the defensive end. The Lakers coach has maximized a smart group that possess strong basketball IQ.
Six straight games for the Lakers holding their opponents to 102 points or fewer. https://t.co/nAghBYgxxD
— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) March 1, 2025
Russillo made a point in his podcast that even if the Lakers do eventually slip up from the top ranking defensively, there is nothing wrong with that. Redick's ability to coach this team to the situation they are now in could very well become the thing that overwhelmingly seals the deal on his rookie season being a massive success.