One of the unsung heroes for the Los Angeles Lakers throughout their run in the In-Season Tournament was wing Cam Reddish. Viewed as more of an offensive-minded player coming into the season, head coach Darvin Ham inserted Reddish into the starting lineup where he has become the team’s primary defensive stopper.
This was on display in the In-Season Tournament Finals when Reddish was tasked with trying to slow down Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton, who had totaled 28 assists without a turnover in the prior two rounds. But thanks to Reddish and the Lakers defense as a whole, they were able to force three turnovers from notoriously sure-handed point guard.
And while Reddish’s performance has come as a surprise to many, Darvin Ham is not one of them as he knew Reddish was willing to do anything to help the Lakers succeed after speaking with him before the season.
“Before we signed Cam, he and I had several conversations,” Ham said after the Lakers’ victory. “Once we signed him, he told me, Coach, just be straight up and clear with me. Whatever you need me to do, whatever I’m not doing, just shoot straight. I said, oh, you got the right guy. Cam is phenomenal.”
If there is one thing about Ham, he is always straightforward with his players and they appreciate that. Reddish might not be scoring at the level he is used to, but his defense has been invaluable to the Lakers and Ham feels there is nothing he can’t do on the court.
“He’s the quintessential 3-and-D guy, but he can also handle the ball,” Ham added. “We use Cam to initiate plays. Cam can switch off on basically anybody. He has a knack for getting deflections and steals. Comes up with huge rebounds. He can finish. He can space the floor.
“All of that said, I just told him, man, embrace the work. The environment is going to love on you, so make sure you submerge yourself into the environment that we’ve created with our program. He’s going to flourish within it.”
Sometimes all it takes is getting with the right organization around the right people to really bring out the best in certain players. Joining the Lakers with Ham as the coach and LeBron James and Anthony Davis setting the tone as leaders has allowed for Reddish to flourish in a role the team greatly need him in and the results have been outstanding.
Ham mentioned hoping to coach Reddish after seeing his performance as a member of the Atlanta Hawks during the 2021 Eastern Conference Finals when Ham was an assistant with the Milwaukee Bucks. Now he has gotten that opportunity and the pairing has proven to be perfect for both.
Lakers’ LeBron James praises Cam Reddish for clutch 3-pointer vs. Pacers
Cam Reddish only scored nine points in the Lakers win, but the lone 3-pointer he knocked down was absolutely huge for the Lakers in staving off a Pacers comeback and that moment was not lost on LeBron James.
“And like AD said, getting Vando back, getting Rui back has helped our frontcourt, our size, and getting Cam back has helped us a lot. Not too many people talk about it, but one of the biggest shots of the game was they made their run, cut it to three and Cam hits that big-time three in front of our bench to put it up six.
“We didn’t go back after that. Cam has been big-time for us and I’m happy to see him thrive under this role with us because he deserves it, for sure.”
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