The Los Angeles Lakers exited the Darvin Ham era with one word permeating the locker room, front office, and news desks. In the immediate aftermath of suffering an eighth postseason loss in nine tries, everyone seemed to want one thing: Accountability.
That became the theme of the Lakers' search for an eighth coach since Phil Jackson retired in 2011, and ultimately played a significant part in the decision to hire JJ Redick.
Redick has been magnificent during his first season at the helm, guiding Los Angeles to a 40-23 record through 63 games. He has the team on pace for its first 50-win season since 2019-20 and has helped the locker room overcome trades, losing streaks, and injuries.
Following a brutal 111-108 loss to the 22-42 Brooklyn Nets, Redick showed exactly why he's been able to lead the Lakers as far as he has: He's held them accountable.
Per Dave McMenamin of ESPN:
"I think it was just an overall mentality just to take shortcuts tonight," Redick said. "Want to be a good team? You want to win in the NBA? You got to do the hard stuff. We couldn't even pass to each other. We couldn't enter our offense, running ball screens literally at half court. Yeah, that's going to end up in a turnover. I don't know what we're doing."
That may sound harsh, but it's the exact type of brash approach to leadership that intrigued the Lakers in the first place.
JJ Redick sounds off on Lakers trying to take shortcuts against Nets
Not everyone prefers to be coached the same way, but the Lakers seem to have a locker room that responds to this type of dialogue. It's far from surprising, as former franchise player Anthony Davis spoke publicly about the need for accountability in the locker room.
Redick himself has highlighted accountability as a key element of what he hopes to instill as a primary value in Los Angeles.
This is exactly what accountability looks like from a coaching staff to the players themselves. In that same article published by McMenamin, Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves openly spoke about what they could be doing better—and what's gone wrong.
It may not soften the blow of a loss to the lowly Nets at a time when postseason seeding is at stake, but it's a promising sign that the Lakers can turn things around.
Important context is that Los Angeles is down superstar LeBron James, starting forward Rui Hachimura, and center Jaxson Hayes. Los Angeles also continues to be without Maxi Kleber, as well as veteran Markieff Morris and emergent defender Cam Reddish.
Even without a slew of players, however, the Lakers should still be able to play like a team—win or lose, home or away.
Redick holding his team accountable is Exhibit A of why he was hired. It's also a promising sign that he won't be walking around on eggshells just because a new franchise player has arrived and he doesn't know how he'll respond to his coaching style.
Redick is creating a new culture in Los Angeles and the 40-23 record is proof that he has players who respond well to it.