New Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick has often called himself a ‘basketball sicko,’ and his focus on the small details has worked well for his team so far this season. The Lakers have responded positively to everything Redick and his coaching staff have introduced, and he is dedicated to finding the best ways for them to succeed.
However, the Lakers have faced some struggles early in the season, and how Redick and his staff react to losses is also very important. Given how Redick describes himself, it’s no surprise that he likely takes losses hard. But his way of dealing with them is to work even harder.
After a tough loss to the Orlando Magic, Redick was asked how he handles defeats, and his answer was to, literally, go to a dark place.
“Go to a very dark place. Literally, it’s the basement,” Redick said. “I turn the lights out and go watch film. That’s my therapy.”
Everyone has their own way of finding peace. Some prefer to take a break from the game and focus on other things, while others find comfort in going to the gym to shoot or work out. For Redick, as a coach, it’s all about watching film, which is a good thing for the Lakers.
In a loss like the one to the Magic, it’s easy to say the Lakers lost because they missed free throws, but there are many other parts of the game that need improvement.
Redick will identify those issues and then work on solutions to help the team improve. The players will see his dedication to the team’s growth and will likely be motivated to put in the same effort.
This Lakers team is always focused on winning at the highest level, and Redick is showing he is fully committed to doing whatever it takes to make that happen.
JJ Redick: Lakers loss to Magic decided by missed free throws
While there were many reasons the Lakers lost to the Magic, it’s hard to ignore the four missed free throws in the final 30 seconds as a big factor. JJ Redick didn’t blame the loss entirely on those free throws, but he did feel they played a major role in the outcome.
“Every loss is frustrating. Every loss is frustrating. I thought, you know, we’ve, we’ve had, I guess, five, five losses now, you know there’s, there’s certain losses that you could point to a lack of effort, but like a lack of will and competitiveness and physicality to start a game and then you’re having to fight that.
We’ve had that in a few, you know, the Phoenix game, and this game where it comes down to late game, and it can swing on a couple plays, and frankly, it’s swung on our missed free throws tonight.”
