JJ Redick admits he doesn’t know if his players like him
The Los Angeles Lakers coach spoke to the press ahead of the new season.
Los Angeles Lakers coach JJ Redick admitted recently that he doesn’t know if his players are on his good side given the gruelling pre-season plan he is handing out.
The former player spoke to the media ahead of the upcoming season, where he touched on the physical preparations he is putting his players through. ESPN reported that: “players had to run six court lengths in 34 seconds, followed by a short break; then 10 court lengths in 60 seconds, followed by a short break; and finally, six more court lengths in 34 seconds.”
“I don’t know if they like me right now,” Redick joked, admitting that he even joined in with the workout, albeit for the final stretch: “I just ran the last six, and I’m good [not running anymore].
“If we all hate you, that’s great”
The coach admitted previously that he wanted his side in “championship shape” for the new season, and if his words are anything to go by, then he’s certainly leading them down that path: “I think there’s three ways I kind of view ‘Are we in shape?’” Redick added. “The first would be, ‘Are we sprinting back defensively?’ ‘Are we playing with pace offensively?’ And I would include our ability to crash and then get back on defense in that. And then, ‘Are we being physical?’
“So, if those things are being done at a really high level, we’re in shape.”
Star player Luka Doncic also gave fans a peek behind the curtain in terms of Redick’s approach: “It’s not just physical shape, it’s mental shape, too,” he said. “Both are very important. We’re doing it in practice. It was great. Everybody’s in great shape. Everybody’s running a lot, so it’s been great so far.”
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Gabe Vincent echoed Doncic’s sentiment: “I told JJ about a week or two ago, I said, ‘If we all hate you, but we all hate you collectively, that’s great.’ So as long as we’re together in it. Obviously no one wants to run at the end of a long practice, but we know the goal we have set for ourselves and we know what we’re trying to do moving forward. And we all embraced it. We all got the run in and we all got better for it.”
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