JJ Redick isn’t worried about LeBron and Davis missing the Olympics, but should he lighten their load?

The U.S. men’s basketball team’s gold medal streak would have ended in Paris if it hadn’t been for two Lakers. LeBron James was the tone-setter for Team USA, the tournament MVP who led the team in assists and rebounds per game and was second in scoring — making smart decision after smart decision with the ball in his hands. Anthony Davis was the U.S.’s best and most consistent big man on both ends of the court during the Paris Olympics, second on the team in rebounding and a defensive force in the paint when called upon.

Their play this summer begs the question, should first-year coach JJ Redick guide them through training camp and the season? Redick, on Spectrum TV’s Lakeshow Podcast, said: he wasn’t worried about his stars going into the season (hat tip Lakersnation.com).

“I mean, look, those guys are professionals in every sense of the word. I’m not worried about whether they’re ready to play on October 22nd and in shape. We’re going to work with Mike and Ish to make sure they feel like they’re in a great position to start the regular season. They’ll definitely be involved in training camp and preseason here in September, as well as preseason games.”
No one questions or worries about the fitness and professionalism of LeBron and AD. They will be ready to go.

The challenge facing Redick is the same one faced by Darvin Ham (and every coach who has taken the Lakers job): keeping the Lakers’ star duo rested, fresh and healthy while also winning enough games to secure a solid postseason seed. Where is the line between winning games in December and January and wearing players down? The question has never been, “Can LeBron/AD last a full slate of games?” We saw it in last season’s In-Season Tournament, which the Lakers won. We saw it at the Paris Olympics. But it’s one thing to do it in five international games with almost no travel and playing fewer than 25 minutes a night; it’s another thing to do it while playing closer to 30 minutes a night during the marathon 82-game NBA season.

Redick will get a lot of blame or credit for whatever happens with the Lakers this season, but more of that should fall on the front office that hired him. GM Rob Pelinka and company re-signed LeBron James and drafted Dalton Knecht, but overall the Lakers are coming off a 47-game winning roster last season (eighth seed, jumping to seventh after the play-in) and are banking on better health from their role players (Jarred Vanderbilt and Gabe Vincent) and Redick taking the team to new heights in a crowded Western Conference. If the Lakers stay more or less the same — a good team, but one that lands somewhere between a 6-10 seed — is that enough? Is that taking advantage of LeBron’s remaining years?

It’s going to be an interesting season in Los Angeles.