Lakers' JJ Redick Reveals Plan for LeBron James: 'I Want Him Shooting Threes' | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors
Mia Lopez New Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick revealed his plan for superstar LeBron James if he returns to the team.
"He and I have joked about this," Redick said during his introductory press conference Monday, per Forbes Sports' Shane Young. "He shot over 40 percent from three this year. I want him shooting threes."
James has to decide by Saturday whether to pick up his $51.4 million player option for the 2024-25 season or decline it to become an unrestricted free agent.
Even if he chooses to opt out, that may not be the end of his time in Los Angeles. Shams Charania, Jovan Buha and Sam Amick of The Athletic reported on April 30 that the Lakers want James to return and would be open to discussing a three-year, $164 million max extension that he would be eligible for.
The NBA's all-time leading scorer recently wrapped up another stellar season with per-game averages of 25.7 points, 8.3 assists and 7.3 rebounds. He also connected on a career-high 41.0 percent of his three-pointers.
While he attempted 5.1 triples per game in 2023-24, that was a slight step down from the 7.4 three-point attempts he averaged across the previous two seasons combined.
Redick, a longtime NBA sharpshooter, is no stranger to increasing his volume of long-range shots as he aged. He attempted a career-high 8.0 threes per game during his age-34 campaign with the Philadelphia 76ers in 2018-19.
Charania, Buha and Amick revealed Thursday that Redick told the Lakers' front office about the system that he would implement before he was hired by the team, which included utilizing James "more off the ball."
If the four-time MVP stays in Los Angeles, expect him to attempt more threes during the 2024-25 season.