DETROIT — Chris Paul lived in Calabasas. DeAndre Jordan resided in Malibu, while Blake Griffin situated himself in Brentwood.
As JJ Redick, who lived in Manhattan Beach while playing for the Clippers from 2013-2017, explained, “the nature of Los Angeles” makes it challenging to get a team together off the court.
“You get done with practice, and you’re like, I’m not going to go two hours to Calabasas,” the Lakers’ head coach said Monday, referring back to his playing days. “I love you, Chris, but no.”
Whereas the Orlando Magic or Oklahoma City Thunder, Redick said, live in areas that promote teammates living within reasonable distance from one another, the Lakers, for the most part, do not. It’s the reality of the sprawling environment of Southern California.
“Los Angeles is probably one of, if not the hardest markets for guys to connect,” Redick said. “Because guys are spread out, it takes an hour to get anywhere. You live in Orlando, (you) play in Orlando. We all lived in Windermere (an Orlando town) when I first started.”
The league-leading Thunder’s off-the-court bonds have been well-documented during their rise to becoming NBA champions. Redick said that after his playing career in L.A., along with having coached the Lakers for a season, he wanted to be more proactive in promoting team chemistry through team events.
“It was part of like, we got to do more together, whether that was pickleball or obviously there’s opportunities on the road that different guys throughout the season have had a dinner,” Redick said. “I’m sure there’s been some nighttime activities that have happened throughout the year.”
Redick said an off-day golf outing – a players against coaches scramble – in Orlando on Sunday morning before the team flew to Detroit for Monday’s game against the Pistons was another opportunity for what the coach called “natural team-building exercises.” About three weeks ago, Redick said, Luka Doncic decided he wanted to be a golfer. The trash talk started from there, and the team arranged the golf outing.
Austin Reaves, known to frequent golf courses across the country during the NBA season, was a standout performer, Redick said. Doncic played in multiple outfits, an all-orange Jordan Brand outfit and a sleeveless all-white shirt to “work on his tan,” Redick added. Luke Kennard, Bronny James and LeBron James rounded out the Lakers’ players golfing group on Sunday.
The players won, much to Redick’s chagrin, claiming foul play on the 18th hole. After saying he wouldn’t share the name of the player who helped bring the players to 10-under, under what Redick called “questionable” circumstances, he let the name slip as he closed his pregame press conference.
“Bronny hit three balls off the tee,” Redick said. “One of them landed on the green, par 3 and he happened to say that was his first ball. So I’m not sure what was going on.”
DONCIC GOES BACK-TO-BACK
Doncic won his second consecutive Western Conference Player of the Week award on Monday afternoon, the NBA announced, after averaging 42.3 points, 6.8 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game while leading the Lakers to a 4-0 record for games from last Monday through Sunday.
The Slovenian star shot 50% from the field and 39% from behind the arc over the four-game stretch, while averaging three steals per game. Doncic’s 60-point effort against Miami last week, his first 60-point game as a Laker, highlighted the dominant stretch on his way to league-wide recognition.
Monday marked the fourth time Doncic has won the weekly honor this season, and the 19th time he has won one during his nine-season career.
KLEBER RETURNS
Monday marked the first game backup big man Maxi Kleber has been available for since March 8, the second game of the team’s nine-game win streak.
Kleber, who has been dealing with a lumbar back strain, did not travel with the team for the games in Houston, Miami and Orlando. He practiced with the G-League’s South Bay Lakers on Thursday during his rehabilitation process.