Magic Johnson: JJ Redick Has Become Great NBA Coach

Nov 6, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick watches game action against the Portland Trail Blazers during the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images Nov 6, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick watches game action against the Portland Trail Blazers during the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Magic Johnson: JJ Redick Has Become Great NBA Coach

Originally posted on Lakers Nation | By Ron Gutterman | Last updated Nov 11, 2026 12:30 PM ET

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The Los Angeles Lakers are off to a blazing start. They hold the best record in basketball as of Nov. 10, going 10-2 in their first 12 games. Luka Doncic has rightfully received much of the attention due to his MVP-caliber start, but head coach JJ Redick also deserves immense credit.

This became especially true over L.A.’s last two games. The Lakers defeated two quality opponents on the road in back-to-back nights in the Detroit Pistons and Atlanta Hawks. They won each game without one of their two stars, as Doncic missed the Pistons game and Austin Reaves missed the Hawks game. That led to praise from Lakers legend Magic Johnson:

The Lakers’ win over the Hawks yesterday showed that JJ Redick has become a great NBA coach. His in-game switch from man-to-man to a zone defense changed the trajectory of the game, and he’s outstanding at drawing up plays out of timeouts!

— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) November 10, 2026

Johnson had more to say about the Lakers’ hot start, discussing why he feels this roster is better equipped to succeed than last year’s team:

Last year, the Lakers were a slow team that got beat in transition – but not this season. This team is mentally and physically tougher, and that’s why they’re 10-2!

— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) November 10, 2026

Redick has done a remarkable job so far this season, seeming to push all the right buttons when changes needed to be made. He quickly moved to Sandro Mamukelashvili as the team’s primary backup five when Kevon Looney’s minutes weren’t working, he stuck with Jake LaRavia in the starting lineup after strong performances when Ziaire Williams was injured and has kept the Lakers competitive defensively while having the best offense in the NBA.

It’s only 12 games, but the early returns on this Lakers team are strong. They have a chance — entering a light stretch of schedule — to rack up some wins and put themselves on a good track towards a high playoff seed.

JJ Redick praises Lakers for stepping up

The Lakers not only switched off games without Doncic and Reaves, but backup guard Quentin Grimes missed both games as well. Redick gave credit to his roster for stepping up amid some important absences.

“I think the last two games are great examples of next guy up,” Redick said on Spectrum SportsNet. “I’ve talked about this before, there’s a compounding effect to having guys out of the lineup. Do you have enough ball-handling on the floor? Do you have enough rebounding on the floor? Do you have enough shooting on the floor?

“So whenever you do these exercises in the summer when you’re building out your team, you’re like, OK, nine, 10, maybe 11 [players we trust], we shoot it good in a lot of areas. But you lose [Austin Reaves] and [Quentin Grimes] and now you’re down a couple guys.”

This article first appeared on Los Angeles Lakers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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