Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick announced recently that the team would be returning to their most successful starting lineup of 2023-24. That is the grouping of LeBron James, Anthony Davis, D’Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura that went 23-10 in games they started together last season.
Former head coach Darvin Ham experimented with several other lineup pairings, but ultimately landed on this one in the second half of the year when the Lakers desperately needed to go on a run. That lineup had a plus-5.2 net rating after Jan. 1 and was efficient on both ends of the floor.
Redick obviously likes the record associated with that lineup from last year, but he spoke specifically about what he likes when James, Davis, Russell, Reaves and Hachimura are on the court together.
“I like the fact that in the games they played together last year, they were 23-10 with essentially the equivalent of a top-five defense,” Redick said. “I like the size a lot, particularly on the front line with Rui, LeBron and AD. And Austin is what I would say a bigger or slightly above average sized two-guard. So I like the size of that group.
“I like the versatility having three guys who can play with the ball in their hands. You brought up the systems, some of our systems will require players to be off the ball and that doesn’t mean standing around off the ball. It means being involved in screening actions and so far in some of the smaller settings we’ve done that… like AR is a great example.
“We talked very early when I got the job and he spent time with us in Vegas and I told him, I said you know, to this point in your career, you’ve played one way and you’ve got like a great skill set and it’s this circle. All we’re doing, we’re not taking anything out of that circle, we’re just adding to that circle. We’re making the circle a little bigger. We’re making your bag a little bit bigger, making you a little more hard to guard, making you a little bit more dynamic. I think that’s what we’re trying to do for all the players in our program, not just the starting five.”
Under Redick, the Lakers already seem to have a greater priority for size and versatility than they did under Ham. The previous head coach was much more guard-focused and wanted L.A. to be able to get out and run, even at the expense of the defense.
If Redick continues with his strategy into the season, it’s possible the Lakers may have earlier success and won’t have to play catch up in the latter half of the campaign.
JJ Redick discusses Rui Hachimura’s role
During a press conference earlier this week, JJ Redick was asked about Rui Hachimura, his performance for Japan in the 2024 Olympics, and his vision for his role on this team moving forward.
“I thought Rui was fantastic, particularly in the lead-up and exhibition games going into the Olympics, and then also had a couple of really good games in the Olympics,” Redick said. “In terms of his role, I think that’s something that we will define with him, and we will also be open-minded to that evolving.
“Rob brought up the corner crashing because when he’s not posting up or not playing out of closeouts or not screening, Rui is an excellent shooter. We want him shooting corner 3s, so he’s already gonna be in the spot to corner crash. So we’re trying to ramp up his offensive rebounding, we’re gonna ask a lot of him defensively, particularly with bigger wings.
“I think if you look at some of the advanced stuff from last season when he gets the ball in the post against a mismatch, that’s a good option for us. When he’s attacking a closeout, that’s a good option. When he’s playing out of screening action as a roller and getting into the pocket, that’s great for us. So he’ll have a big role, and we’re gonna ask him to do a lot.”