The Los Angeles Lakers are down 2-0 to the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder in the second round of the playoffs, but head coach JJ Redick has proven to lift his team in the biggest games. Redick had zero coaching experience when the Lakers hired him, but he has pulled all the right strings in the playoffs. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has only scored 40 total points. The Lakers are doing everything right, but they don’t have enough talent to win this series.
Luka Doncic is out with a hamstring injury, and the latest reports suggest he will miss this entire series. Even with their superstar, the Lakers would be fighting an uphill battle. Redick really only has six players he can trust to make a positive impact, and the Thunder have ten.
 Nobody thought LA would get to the second round without Luka. Austin Reaves missed the first four games against the Rockets, but the Lakers still pulled the upset in six. Redick keeps putting the player he has in positions to succeed. The coach is doing all the right things. Sadly, he just doesn’t have the talent on his side.
Lakers look genius for betting on JJ Redick
The 15-year NBA veteran was a successful podcaster and broadcaster after hanging up his sneakers. He went from calling the NBA Finals for ESPN to coaching the Lakers. Redick’s only coaching experience was his son’s youth team. It was a bold bet that had zero guarantees.
The 41-year-old had an up-and-down first season that was thrown off by the Luka trade. Redick showed his inexperience in the playoffs as the Lakers were bounced in the first round, despite being the third seed. The infamous Game 4, where he only played five players in the second half, had fans questioning if Redick was the right man to lead a team with title aspirations.
Those are gone now. He is one of the NBA’s best at after-timeout plays. Redick convinced LeBron James to be the third star and got him back to being the alpha in the playoffs. The head coach even has Deandre Ayton making an impact without commanding the ball.
Yes, the Lakers lost the first two games of this series, but they are doing all the right things. Redick has LeBron going off. Austin Reaves bounced back after struggling in Game 1. The Lakers are slowing down SGA and forcing OKC to hit jumpers. Everything is falling for the defending champions.
It is difficult to win without your best player and even harder when facing a significantly deeper squad featuring the reigning MVP. LA doesn’t have enough to win this series, but they have their coach for years to come.
The Los Angeles Lakers look genius for betting on JJ Redick. The NBA veteran had no coaching experience. He knew the game, and thankfully, Dan Hurley turned down the job. It opened the door for Redick, and he’s raising the Lakers up in the playoffs. They won’t win this series, but LA will be back in title contention soon, and Redick will be a key reason why. He is elite and keeps improving. The Lakers nailed this hire.
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