The Lakers leaning on chemistry could prove vital under new head coach

Entering their third season together, the Lakers will be able to lean on chemistry as they learn the system of new head coach JJ Redick.

The Lakers are going through an all-too-common process this preseason of learning a new system under a new head coach. For LeBron James, this is the fourth time he’s had to do so, starting with him joining Luke Walton and then continuing through Frank Vogel, Darvin Ham and, now, JJ Redick.

At times, those training camps have either included or alternated with ones that involve adapting to a whole new roster as well. For a number of years, roster overhaul meant very few familiar faces returned year over year.

This season, though, that couldn’t be further from the truth. For the first time in the LeBron era in purple and gold, the Lakers have almost exclusively run it back. Some of that wasn’t entirely by design as they did pursue free agents, but they ultimately have effectively the exact same roster that ended last season with the exception of just two players.

Furthermore, the core of this team is going on three seasons together. The team’s starting five, who finished the regular season strong last year and are already penciled in as the leading unit this year, plus Jarred Vanderbilt, Max Christie join them as part of the core that has been together since the 2023 trade deadline.

That chemistry is something the team can lean on through the preseason. At Media Day, Vando spoke to Spectrum about the team's camaraderie.

“It helps a lot,” Vando said. “Being able to play a couple years with certain guys is kind of rare in this league. For us to be able to build some chemistry and be able to know each other, it makes it better. It makes it easier. Building that camaraderie, which we’ve done the last couple of years, I think it puts us in a great position.”

There’s no shortcut to learning a new system. Instead, view this as an amusement park ride. Instead of waiting in the long, but necessary, line to get on the ride, the Lakers got the Fast Pass where you have to wait in line, but for a much shorter time.

Thanks to their chemistry, the Lakers are getting a fast pass in learning this new system. They still have to go through the line, but they have a much shorter one to get through.

While there were plenty of other reasons JJ Redick may have stuck with the team’s starting lineup, their chemistry is an added bonus. They gelled together last season and now can use that to help them learn a new system this year.

None of this makes it a sure thing that the Lakers excel under Redick or in this new offense. But it does mean that they can move at a much faster pace and, hopefully, avoid a slow start to the season that has too often put them behind the eight ball from the jump.

You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude.