Many things are the same for the Lakers this year compared to last season, highlighted by a largely identical roster, minus a couple of rookies.
However, in big and small ways, change is happening. One of the biggest differences is that JJ Redick is the head coach, who is bringing a level of intensity they’ve never seen during NBA practices to training camp.
But one of the most notable, an unorthodox change, has been an actual, live DJ at training camp in the opening week. It is as unusual as it sounds.
His stage name is DJ Meel and he’s from Cleveland, Ohio. He completed a program at UCLA for Musical Supervision and has performed live sets for Uninterrupted’s IG platform.
You can see him mixing up songs in the back, but you hear him the moment you enter the building.
It’s that classic muffled sound of hip-hop bass ramped up to eleven, a banging that can be heard outside every neighborhood in America, except now it’s inside the UCLA Health and Training Center.
Last season, music was played over speakers. Nothing near the volume or energy inside the practice facility now. So, why make this change and who made the decision?
Like many things involving the Lakers, it started with LeBron James.
“It came from LeBron,” Redick said after Wednesday’s practice. “He requested that there be a DJ before and after practice. I said to him in front of the group,” ‘I like the vibe. Can he continue to be here?’ “I don’t know if that’s an indefinite ask or if it’s a temporary thing. I don’t know; we’re going to figure it out. Also, we have to figure out who’s footing the bill.”
The Lakers will probably have to settle the bill, but who knows, maybe vice president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka can chip in to keep the vibes going.
It wasn’t just Redick fielding questions about the music during practice; players also commented on DJ Meel’s work during training camp.
“This just brings good vibes,” Austin Reaves said after Wednesday’s practice. “Just walk in the morning and you got blasted music. You can hear it all the way in the locker room. You obviously hear it the weight room. That’s where it’s the loudest, but it’s just good vibes and we’re all just out here just having a good time putting the work in at the same time.”
If you’re worried about players jumping on the ones-and-twos and doing their own set, fear not; only one person controls the turntables.
“DJ Meel chooses the songs,” Redick said. “Nobody’s got the aux chord but him.”
In case you’re wondering if anyone is an exception to this rule, Reaves confirmed he most definitely is not.
“Nah, they’d kicked me off aux for sure,” Reaves said.
The music is mainly hip-hop, from old-school acts like Snoop Dogg to current stars like Drake and Baby Keem. Some different artists were also played post-practice, like Sam Cooke, which threw Anthony Davis off while answering questions.
AD is clearly not an “Animal House” fan.
The music may have disrupted Davis’ focus momentarily, but Gabe Vincent thinks that could be a good thing. Games offer plenty of ways to throw off your concentration that you have to overcome.
“I think it just allows a layer of distraction,” Vincent said after Thursday’s practice. “There’s a lot of stuff going on in the game from the fan experience. It’s 20,000 people in there, it’s music, fans jumping around, so we need to be able to tune out even a great DJ in the corner. So, it was just another layer for us to just work in our game, work on our communication.”
So, how much does this all really matter? After all, a few songs played by a DJ won’t impact the Lakers’ ability to grab offensive rebounds. DJ Meel certainly won’t be rotating on defense or be the backup big this team desperately needs.
The biggest thing is that it’s a breath of fresh air. It has brought a different atmosphere to practice than your typical setting.
And if the vibes stay high and the wins start coming in when the regular season starts, then DJ Meel’s tracks playing at a high volume will be music to Lakers fan’s ears.
