Sport in general and the NBA in particular have been violently shaken by the fires that are ravaging Los Angeles these days and also by the cold and ice storm that is affecting part of the United States. The league, which on Thursday already postponed the Lakers-Hornets game, also decided to postpone the Lakers-Spurs and Clippers-Hornets games because of the fires, as well as the Hawks-Rockets game because of the inclement weather hitting Atlanta.
The team that has been most affected by the fires is undoubtedly the Lakers. Their coach, JJ Redick, could not hold back tears as he lamented the loss of his family’s home, reduced to rubble by the fire that is still active in the Palisades and has already burned more than 20,000 acres, leaving irreparable damage in that community
Redick’s wife, Chelsea, and their two sons, Knox and Kai, were one of thousands of families evacuated from their homes. The Lakers coach met his family at the hotel they had moved to and was able to see for himself how the Palisades house he had rented while looking for a more permanent home in his first year as the team’s coach had been reduced to ashes.
I wasn’t prepared for what I saw, I went through Palisades Village and everything was gone. I don’t think you can prepare yourself for something like that. Our home, it’s gone
“I wasn’t prepared for what I saw,” Redick said. “It’s devastation and total destruction. I had to go a different way to get to the house, but I went through most of Palisades Village and it was all gone. And I don’t think you can prepare yourself for something like that. Our home, it’s gone.”
Helping those affected
Redick spoke about some of the items they lost in the fire, family treasures accumulated over 18 years of marriage and 10 years of parenthood. “I don’t want people to feel sorry for me and my family. We’re going to be fine,” he said. “There are people who, because of some political and insurance issues, are not going to be fine. And we’re going to do everything we can to help anyone who’s in trouble because of this.”
I don’t want people to feel sorry for me and my family. We’re going to be fine, but there are people who, because of insurance problems, are not going to be fine. We’ll do everything we can to help
Redick may have become the face of tragedy for the Lakers organization, but he shared that there are others within the team who are dealing with the havoc the fires have wreaked. Among those affected are Dan Grigsby, the team’s legal director, who lost his home in Pacific Palisades; Josh Green, the team’s general counsel, who lost his home and whose parents lost their home in the Palisades fire; and Rohan Ali, a team cameraman, whose parents lost their home in Altadena.
Charitable contributions from Davis and Vanderbilt
Los Lakers players Anthony Davis and Jarred Vanderbilt made significant charitable contributions to a GoFundMe created to help Ali’s family. “I think what we struggle with the most is the loss of the community. And I recognize that the community is made up of people and we’re going to rebuild it and we want to help lead in that regard. But all the churches, the schools, the library, everything is gone.”
We want to give people hope and we want to offer, I don’t want to say a distraction, maybe an escape
Redick advocated for a return to competition as soon as possible: “Obviously, we want to give people hope and we want to offer, I don’t want to say a distraction, maybe an escape route. We talked about it as a group before training. It’s our responsibility, everyone’s responsibility on this team, to lead this and help people,” he said.
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