JJ Redick’s Lakers tenure began with an upset. In his much-anticipated coaching debut, the Timberwolves managed to drown the Lakers with their scintillating defense. No stars featured in the matchup as LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Anthony Edwards all missed the preseason opener. It allowed the focus to be entirely on both sides’ early preparations before the regular season begins. Despite a loss, there was a lot that Redick managed to do right, even seemingly stealing his Lakers HC position rival, Dan Hurley’s play right off the bat.

Redick left a great impression on reporter Jovan Buha in particular. It was only a preseason game, but Redick has managed to establish the culture from the onset. He spoke highly about “efficiency” and his troops followed suit. The Lakers competed for each possession, displaying great cohesion and teamwork in the process. Furthermore, the 40-year-old was actively “engaged” as Buha noted.

While he did spend most time on the chair, intricately studying his players’ execution and organization, he didn’t hesitate when it was necessary to provide his insights. “There was a couple of times he pulled D’Lo to the side and he was having some animated conversation with him. During huddles he was drawing stuff up, which is bit of a new thing for the Lakers,” Buha explained on his show.

A part of it also included Redick stealing a page out of Dan Hurley’s notebook. And it happened during the very first play of the game. “It’s the play that JJ Redick stole from Dan Hurley which I think is kind of ironic that that’s the guy he was in competition with for this Lakers job. And JJ had Hurley on his podcast back in April and they talked about that set specifically,” the Lakers reporter revealed.

When competing with the NCAA icon during the summer, Redick remained humble. He understood why the Lakers pursued Hurley with such aggressiveness in his comparison. “Dan Hurley is a two-time national champion at UConn, I am a two-time 55 Swish League champion in the third and fourth-grade division,” he said at the time.

His debut might have ended in a 17-point blowout loss for the Purple and Gold, but the franchise will feel content with their latest hiring. The grandeur of the moment didn’t faze him and he was constantly thinking on his feet. Given the unit he had at hand, what he extracted from them was commendable. Furthermore, as far as accountability goes, Redick is readily placing demands on his roster.

The JJ Redick-Lakers era is showing good signs

Following his debut coaching performance, JJ Redick’s instinctive acumen was noticeable. “We got destroyed in the possession battle, turnovers, offensive rebounds,” he immediately dissected post-game. These observations were all accurate. The Lakers’ sloppiness led to them conceding 12 more points off turnovers. Furthermore, Luka Garza, who Redick described as a “monster“, managed to create a large deficit in second-chance points the Wolves could obtain.

The first-time head coach, though, didn’t dwell much into criticizing the various sets the team ran. With just three days of training camp, he doesn’t expect the Lakers to be in symphony just yet. His measured parameters extended to their competitive drive, which he saw plenty of. In particular on defense, even though room for further solidifying, the Lakers showcased great battle instinct.

As a team, they logged in more blocks and steals. The unit ensured no bucket would come easy, and the groundwork of pushing the agenda in the preseason has come from Redick. Players are fascinated by his pool of knowledge and intellect. Russell specifically couldn’t stop thinking about one of his sets so much so that he called his head coach even while playing a round of golf.

That’s among the various innovations of JJ Redick that were present in the pre-season game. Despite being the inferior side in terms of their offense, the Lakers managed to win the assist battle. Keeping the ball moving and the rival defense scattered seems to be a key part of the 40-year-old’s plans. Last season, while they averaged 118 points, their assists came out to be just as many as they had tonight, 28. They scored 11 points less, though.

With his keystones expected to be back in the rotation against the Phoenix Suns on Sunday, a sharp system shouldn’t be out of reach for JJ Redick. He has proven his ability to adjust and manage rotations well. His confidence in not just his capabilities but also the strength of his group at hand could certainly bring about a turnaround for the Purple and Gold.