JJ Redick Staying Locked In While Talking To Taylor Rooks And Obsessing Over What Basketball They Use Suggests He's The Perfect Hire For The Lakers

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As I've discussed before, the blog game isn't always butterflies and rainbows. I know there are some who may feel that way looking from the outside, but the reality is sometimes you are forced to blog about things that go against everything you believe in. A topic that makes you more and more disgusted with each keystroke, but that's the blog game. You power through. 

Personally, this could not be more true when it comes to JJ Redick and the Lakers. Considering not a day goes by where I don't wish the worst for that franchise, the JJ Redick hire has me in a bit of a pickle. I loved the move when it was announced, I think anyone who has followed Redick and understands how he views the game knew he was exactly what the Lakers needed, and while it's only one game given what we saw last night in their opening win against the Wolves, it does seem like the Lakers nailed this choice.

Perhaps part of why I feel this way is because JJ Redick is doing his best Joe Mazzulla impression. I can understand why he would go with that approach, as they are pretty similar in their basketball philosophy and their general basketball sicko mentality. Redick has talked a bunch about how he has a relationship with Joe and picks his brain on coaching, and it's not hard to see the similarities.

He's willing to talk shit to opposing players, like we saw with Anthony Edwards. You have to be a bit deranged to talk shit to Ant in a relatively close game, but that's the mentality I want from my head coach

In the huddle, it's no surprise things are NIGHT AND DAY compared to what we were hearing from Darvin Ham

I mean, he's right. Communication, attention to detail, pace, physicality, 3P volume, having total command of the huddle, I've seen this before.

As sick as it makes me, if I were a Lakers fan hearing JJ Redick in these huddles would have me over the moon. It's clear he understands what makes a team successful in today's NBA, and that's not something they've had for a while.

If that wasn't enough, you also cannot rule out how well he handled his sideline interview with Taylor Rooks. Now I've seen players get completely overwhelmed and say some of the stupidest shit you'll ever hear when being interviewed by Rooks. Who could blame them really? She melts brains. But JJ? He was locked in the entire time

That's what I call being locked in, and again, this is just another reason why it certainly looks like JJ is the guy. In fact, this might have been the toughest challenge he's going to face all season and he nailed it. Eyes forward, locked in on basketball, don't fall to temptation and say something you'll regret later. This could have been a Jaylen Brown situation where he said he'd have 5 rings by the time he's 30 but again, who could blame him for getting a little carried away?

And finally, coming off a big win what was the first thing on JJ's mind? Basketballs

I can't be a hypocrite, this is the exact type of sicko behavior I love about Joe Mazzulla. This type of obsessive attention to detail is what makes him one of the best coaches in the league. Haters will call it a hardo move, but that's all rooted in jealousy. They do the same thing with Psycho Joe. This type of shit matters, I promise you. Having a coach that is such a basketball psycho that he gives a shit about the type of basketball that's being used is a fantastic sign moving forward because it tells us he's leaving no stone unturned. Personally, it makes me want to vomit because fuck the Lakers and all, but I can't hate on this move. Joe Mazzulla won a title with moves like this. 

So listen, it may bring me pain to write a blog like this, but all I can do is be honest and talk about what my eyes see. Time will tell how things shake out, but I can't help but continue to get Year 1 Joe Mazzulla vibes when it comes to JJ Redick, and seeing as how they just handled the Wolves with relative ease, it's already starting to translate onto the court.

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go shower. Talking this positively about the Lakers makes me feel rather gross, but it's hard to ignore that they may have hit a homerun with this hire.