Despite being a rookie coach, JJ Redick has been tasked with a massive responsibility. To get the Lakers back into title contention! With Rob Pelinka failing to attract any big-name free agent this summer, the Lakers seem set with their roster for next season. And this could make JJ’s life even more difficult as he is expected to make do with the talent that is available.
Hoping for the Lakers to avoid another playoff failure, media veteran Jovan Buha urged the head coach to fix the weaknesses of current stars Anthony Davis and Austin Reaves.
Can JJ Redick utilize Anthony Davis’ ‘underrated’ skill?
This past season, AD gave the Lakers Nation a huge sigh of relief as he ended those lingering injury concerns by playing a career-high 76 games. Moreover, he was dominant on both ends averaging 24.7 points and nearly thirteen rebounds. But amplifying one aspect of his game could elevate AD’s game to the next level. His PLAYMAKING! Yes, JJ Redick might need to emphasize on the offense generating through AD as he averaged the highest assists of his Lakers tenure this year with 3.5. And Buha pointed out that AD was at 82 percentile around the league in assist percentage.
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Moreover, JJ himself has similar plans for AD and he has also had a conversation about it with The Brow, “One of the things I brought up with him is just the idea of him as a hub. There’s a bunch of guys at the 5 position in the NBA that sort of operate in that way. I don’t know that he’s been used in that way and sort of maximized all of his abilities.” With players like Domantas Sabonis and Nikola Jokic, the Lakers understand how much a passing big man can impact team success. Davis could do the same for them. Then, there is also a need to improve AD’s shooting ability and get his three-point shooting above 30%, which would help spread the offense and create a major threat for defenders. Now that it’s clear what AD needs to work on next season, let’s dive into another key player’s weakness.
Austin Reaves urged to take on the sharpshooter role for the Lakers
Sure, AD and LeBron are the pillars of the Lakers roster. But there might not be a more important supporting member on the team than Austin Reaves. Having a breakout season last year, Reaves became a beloved young star in LA. However, the Lakers need him to do more. As per the media veteran on Buha’s Block, AR15 needs to significantly improve his catch and shoot game from deep range. With LeBron as the facilitator, a lot of Reaves’ shots are going to be split second threes. Unfortunately, he made only 16.7% catch and shoot threes in the playoffs this year. And that’s a massive drop from his 36.7% during the regular season.
USA Today via Reuters
Even his pull-up shooting took a hit during the post-season dropping nearly two percent. But with JJ as the new head coach, Reaves could get some crucial tips from him as Redick is one of the greatest catch and shoot snipers in league history. Moreover, JJ is also hoping for AR to work on this aspect, “I think a big thing, partially in terms of how I want him to play in our offensive system. He’s gotta get in better condition. He’s gotta be able to move more, and based on our early conversations, he’s bought into that.” Yes, the more conditioned Reaves is, the better his chances would be of making deep range shots in a long and tiring season.
If JJ is able to enhance these qualities in his star players, then the Lakers might do just fine even though they have not many any roster changes this summer. Do you agree?