JJ Redick Lambasts Popular View of Modern NBA Amid Debate Over Declining Ratings

The Lakers coach weighed in on basketball's latest existential crisis.

JJ Redick during the Lakers' 97–87 loss to the Timberwolves on Dec. 13, 2024. / Matt Blewett-Imagn Images

For as long as the NBA has existed, onlookers have declared it to be in trouble.

They did it in the 1950s, when its teams still frequented small Midwestern cities, and in the 1970s, when the television explosion seemed to leave it behind, and in the 1990s, when its best player walked away.

Now, in the 2020s, the advent of streaming and proliferation of the three-point shot are driving new discussions about the league's trajectory. These arguments have Los Angeles Lakers coach JJ Redick unconvinced.

"I don't think the league is as homogenized as a lot of people make it out to be," Redick began a lengthy spiel Thursday via Antonio Harvey on YouTube. "There are certain rosters and certain players that because of their skill sets it makes sense to shoot a lot of threes."

However, Redick added, that's not true of every team—and the onus is on the league's broadcasting partners to explain that better instead of defaulting to lazy analysis.

"I don't think we as the national partners have done a good job of storytelling, of celebrating the game," Redick said. "If I'm a casual fan and you tell me every time I turn on the television that the product sucks, well, I'm not going to watch the product."

Redick, who worked for ESPN from the 2022 to '24 seasons, admitted that he was part of the problem. With Amazon and NBC set to come on board as broadcast partners in 2026, it bears watching whether the way the league is marketed changes.

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