JJ Redick is again preaching patience while also acknowledging the need for improvement

SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 30: Head coach JJ Redick of the Los Angeles Lakers motions to his team against the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center on October 30, 2026 in San Francisco, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Although not always the case, most good NBA teams offer indications of their quality quite early in the season. Through seven games, the Los Angeles Lakers have done precisely that (partly thanks to a friendly schedule). They’re fourth in the West at 5-2 with the league’s third-ranked offense, 18th-ranked defense and seventh-best net rating (plus-7.5), per Cleaning the Glass.

Despite a team’s general quality typically revealing — or, sometimes, merely previewing — itself early into the year, the specifics require much more time crystallize. Rotations and schematics change. Players progress or regress. Injuries and trades crop up. Other teams adapt. For any team with lofty end-of-season aspirations, building toward those goals is a long-term process, including the 2026-27 Lakers.

“We want to become a great team. You don’t become a great team in six games. We want to become a great team after 82 games and have a chance to go compete for a championship in April and May and June. It’s a process to get there,” Redick told reporters following Friday’s loss to the Golden State Warriors. “We are going to be patient. There’s also, along with patience, doing what you’re supposed to do. I think as we play more games together, we do more walkthroughs together, we do more film together, we do more practice together, that will all get better.”

After overhauling much of the rotation in free agency, led by three new starters, the Lakers will take some time before reaching their final form. Redick understands that and has repeatedly harped on this group’s need for a lengthy runway to gel.

Fortunately, the schedule remains fairly light over the next few weeks — a road game against the Detroit Pistons on Sunday should test them, however — even if it includes plenty of postseason hopefuls. A month-long stretch from late November to late December featuring matchups with the San Antonio Spurs, Indiana Pacers Philadelphia 76ers, Houston Rockets (twice), Denver Nuggets (twice) and Minnesota Timberwolves (twice) should give Los Angeles some important insights about its state at that time.

That’s still many weeks away, though, so the Lakers will hope all the games, walkthroughs, film sessions and practices they share together before then accelerates their path toward becoming the great team they’re aiming to be.

You can follow Jackson on Twitter at @jackfrank_jjf.