[autotag]JJ Redick[/autotag]’s first season as an NBA head coach is off to a sound start.
As of Thursday afternoon, the Los Angeles Lakers have a 7-4 record to sit sixth in the Western Conference standings.
Redick and the Lakers have taken down some impressive teams early in the season as well. Los Angeles opened the 2024-25 calendar with a win over the Minnesota Timberwolves, a Western Conference finalist last season, as part of a 3-0 start. The Lakers also took down perennial playoff teams like the Phoenix Suns and the Memphis Grizzlies, the latter of whom they beat just on Wednesday night.
Four-time NBA champion LeBron James, at age 39, has still played a major role for Redick’s team. James finished the Memphis win with 35 points, 12 rebounds, and 14 assists for his third straight triple-double, and the legend is averaging 24.3 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 9.4 assists through 11 games.
The Lakers finished with a 47-35 record in 2023-24, so the real test for Redick will come in the postseason, but Duke’s all-time leading scorer looks like anything but a disaster as he settles into his new position.