JJ Redick follows the numbers to naming a proven and elite Lakers starting five

The Los Angeles Lakers will enter the 2024-25 season with five proven starters and a cast of role players hoping to avoid the injury bug that derailed their 2023-24 campaign. Los Angeles will also have a projected top-10 draft pick who fell into its lap at No. 17 overall this past June.

It's a good problem to have when there are options for the starting lineup, but deciding between the available players will be an early test that will set the tone for the JJ Redick era.

Redick is a first-year head coach who has taken steps to establish a new culture in Los Angeles. He's spoken openly about the importance of player development and off-ball movement, and is already working with the younger players to help them find their place in the rotation.

In a recent appearance on The Lowe Post with Zach Lowe, Redick was asked if he has a starting five in mind. His answer was brief and to the point:

"Yeah. Yeah. It'll be the starting five that went 23-10 last year."

For those unfamiliar, the starting five that Redick is referring to is the group of D'Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura, LeBron James, and Anthony Davis.

JJ Redick names his starting five for the 2024-25 season

As Redick mentioned, the Lakers finally returned to starting their five best players in February. From that point on, the team went 23-10, ranked No. 3 in the NBA in offensive rating, and boasted the fifth-best winning percentage in the Association.

It was a certifiably elite stretch of games from Los Angeles, which sustained its borderline dominance for just over 40 percent of the season.

Unfortunately, the Lakers all-but refused to utilize that five-man lineup in a starting capacity until 60 percent of the season had passed. As such, that 23-10 record was accumulated after a 24-25 start to the season that resigned the franchise to another Play-In Tournament appearance.

That 33-game stretch, however, included wins over three of the four teams that reached the 2024 Conference Finals, including the eventual NBA champions, and firmly established how much more the Lakers were capable of.

Beyond the 23-10 record is the fact that Los Angeles was a balanced unit with the group of Davis, Hachimura, James, Reaves, and Russell. It was No. 2 in the NBA in both points in the paint and three-point field goal percentage after February 1, and No. 6 in assists.

Over the course of the full season, that five-man lineup outscored opponents by 6.6 points per 100 possessions—a margin that was unfortunately squandered by an injury-plagued second unit.

The obvious retort to Redick's decision will be that the Lakers lost to the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs. That five-man lineup outscored Denver by 9.9 points per 100 possessions, however, which again speaks to the true reason for Los Angeles' shortcomings: Injuries to the reserves.

Piecing together the ideal second unit will be a task unto itself, but Redick is following the numbers and giving the Lakers a chance to play at an elite level once again by starting a proven lineup.