Last season, LeBron James and Anthony Davis led the Los Angeles Lakers to the inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament Championship. Now, the journey to defend that title is set to begin with a new head coach in JJ Redick as the Lakers take on the San Antonio Spurs in the first group stage game of the now-renamed Emirates NBA Cup on Friday night.
With the Lakers returning much of their roster from last season, the understanding of what’s ahead of them is well known, but the same can’t be said for Redick. This time last year, Redick was still a commentator and analyst at ESPN, so taking part in this from the coach’s chair is a completely new experience.