JJ Redick storms out of Los Angeles Lakers press conference after LeBron James question

Just eight matches into his debut NBA coaching season, Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick stormed out of the post-game press conference on Wednesday, clearly irritated by queries regarding his team.

With the Lakers defeated 131-114 by the Memphis Grizzles, plummeting their record to an even 4-4, Redick demanded that his squad demonstrate effort akin to famed dedication and then promptly exited the briefing unexpectedly, less than 10 minutes in.

The media prodded about whether the Lakers exhibited the same fervour as their decorated leader. But for Redick, having already expressed concerns over some players' lack of effort alongside James, he tersely responded, agitated with the Lakers' initial performances of the season.

When pressed about how he was motivating the roster to emulate James' intensity, Redick retorted, "I just did," set the microphone down, stood up, and left the press conference abruptly.

During the press conference, Redick highlighted the Lakers' struggles, particularly their poor 31.3 per cent shooting from beyond the arc and how they were outplayed and outrebounded by a significant margin of 13 in the game.

Despite the coach's strategy to prevent passes to the middle of the court, Memphis Grizzlies dominated with 60 points in the paint, with Ja Morant, Jaylen Wells, and Jaren Jackson Jr. each racking up over 20 points.

The Lakers' defence was unable to disrupt Memphis' effective wheel action, which involves players moving in a circular pattern to create scoring opportunities through curls, rips, or breaks in the play.

Redick praised James for his hard work and leadership, noting that at nearly 40 years old, he played with the most effort on the team. "He played hard," Redick remarked about James.

"Almost 40 years old, played the hardest on our team. Says a lot about him."

However, when questioned about the rest of the team's performance and asked if he was satisfied, Redick replied: "No one is."

While not naming anyone specifically, Redick did comment on limiting the four-time champion's playing time to 21 minutes, attributing the decision to ongoing issues with D'Angelo Russell's "level of compete", "attention to detail," and consistency, which he has been addressing for "a couple of weeks."

This story first appeared on