The Los Angeles Lakers have gotten off to a phenomenal start this season. Despite a mountain of injuries early on, they sit at 11-4 through their first 15 games.
LA has shown it’s more than capable of competing with the Western Conference’s best, and head coach JJ Redick has been a major reason why.
Redick is in his second season leading the Lakers, and so far, he’s picked up right where he left off last year, at least when it comes to the regular season.
His hiring caused some controversy, as he came into the role with no prior coaching experience beyond guiding his son’s youth basketball team for a handful of years.
Still, he silenced many doubters during his first season, guiding the Lakers to 50 wins in 2024-25. Some critics remain, though, including Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch, who recently took a playful shot at Redick on The Ringer’s “The Zach Lowe Show.”
“I bet you three quarters of these people are going to go home and do a podcast tonight,” Finch said. “I mean, it’ll qualify you to coach the Lakers.”