JJ Redick Provides Update On LeBron James' Groin Injury

Following the Los Angeles Lakers’ crucial win over the Houston Rockets, which not only secured their 50th win of the season but also clinched the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference, head coach JJ Redick took the podium in a lively postgame press conference. 

The first topic on everyone’s mind was the health of LeBron James, who had briefly appeared to tweak his groin during the third quarter and left the game. When asked directly about LeBron’s condition, Redick kept it short and light: 

“Yeah, yeah. He’s fine.”

It was a reassuring response for Lakers fans, especially considering LeBron’s history with groin injuries. His ability to walk off without issue and play through the final minutes seemed to indicate it wasn’t serious, and Redick’s confidence further settled any concerns. 

The Lakers can now breathe easy, knowing their leader is expected to be fully healthy heading into the postseason.

Redick, who has experienced his fair share of high-stakes moments as a player but is still navigating his first season as a head coach, was clearly emotional and reflective after the team’s milestone victory. 

After the final buzzer, the players celebrated in the locker room by dousing Redick with eight ice buckets, an initiation of sorts after reaching the 50-win mark. The celebration was heartfelt, but Redick jokingly apologized for the chaos that ensued.

"And I just want to apologize to Kathy. Hopefully, in the next nine days, the $17,000 of damage to the carpet can get fixed. So it was about eight ice buckets that was put on me."

"But I think it was just, for our group, you know, different versions of this team. For the guys that have been here all along, they went through every single peak and valley."

"I think even this third iteration of this team has gone through a bunch of peaks and valleys. I'm just incredibly proud of our team. It's an accomplishment to win 50 games in the regular season in any year."

"I think particularly this year in this Western Conference it is, and it's a credit to our players. Each one at different points in time has contributed to winning. They've all participated in a winning culture."

"And our coaching staff, our performance staff, everybody down the line, like, it's a great group to be a part of. We want to go win one more game, and we'll figure out Sunday who we play in the first round."

Speaking on the rhythm of the team’s star trio, Redick highlighted the synergy that has developed between Luka, LeBron, and Reaves. 

"I think it's great for Luka. All three of those guys, Bron, AR, and Luka, I think this last week and a half, have really found a nice rhythm, not just individually, but within what we're trying to do and playing together and using each other to create advantages."

"We spent about 45 minutes this morning starting to just map out. We obviously don't know when we're going to play, but starting to map out next week, and it's going to be important over the next eight, nine days to stay in that rhythm, and we have to be smart about it, but there's still got to be some work next week." 

"We want to prioritize rest about it, but there's still got to be some work next week. We want to prioritize rest and recovery, of course, but we got to also stay in that rhythm." 

As for his own journey, Redick made it clear that the job isn’t done. Reflecting briefly on the flight back from Dallas, he said:

"It's not done. And I spent all of three and a half minutes on the flight back from Dallas just thinking about making the playoffs and thinking about the coaching profession." 

"And I think as a coach, you're obviously judged on regular season wins and losses and your ability to get to the playoffs. But I think the other two things that you're really judged on are the way you're able to handle the pressure of the playoffs, the adjustments, the in-game stuff."

"There's still so much work that we have to do, myself, our staff. And then I think you're also judged on the culture you create and whether or not your players and everybody in the building like coming to work."