Basketball coaches have understood for that if you're up six points late and intentionally foul then it can turn things from a two-possession game into a three-possession game. JJ Redick may be first (and is certainly the most high-profile) to ever say such a thing into a microphone, having discussed the situation with LeBron James on the Mind The Game podcast before their relationship turned into player-coach.
safe to say bron and jj practice what they preach https://t.co/s3Qlft9XXS pic.twitter.com/AqolG1U0Pu
— Coach Rome (@Rome_Beast) November 14, 2024
The clip is newly relevant today because it appears the duo put this knowledge into practice during Wednesday night's victory over the Memphis Grizziles. With the Lakers enjoying a 126-120 lead with 18.1 seconds remaining in regulation, James committed a personal take foul on Marcus Smart.
Smart made the first and missed the second attempt. Grizzlies big man Santi Aldama actually grabbed an offensive rebound and was able to score a putback to close the Lakers' lead down to three—which is a good reminder that the strategy is not infallible.
Anthony Davis, however, sank two free throws to give Los Angeles the necessary breathing room.
It's a small thing, but small things can make all the difference, so opposing coaches should be going through that old podcast episode by episode for clues to what James and Redick are going to do in specific situations.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as LeBron James and JJ Redick Pull Off Tactical Ploy They First Conspired in Podcast.
