Lakers coach JJ Redick's verdict on 'Zen' Matisse Thybulle

• Thybulle is shooting 8-for-19 from three through his first four games as a Laker
• JJ Redick called his start a "pleasant surprise" after a July talk about his body
• Redick says Thybulle and Ziaire Williams take defensive load off Austin Reaves and Luka Dončić

Phil Jackson is the "Zen Master", and Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick believes Boomers bronze medallist Matisse Thybulle is carrying the same vibes as the 13-time NBA champion.

Jackson, 81, won 11 championships as coach (six with the Bulls and five with the Lakers) and two as a player with the New York Knicks in 1970 and 1973. He earned the nickname "Zen Master" because of his unorthodox approach to coaching, teaching mindfulness, Native American spirituality, and Buddhist meditation.

"I haven't asked him this yet, but I feel like Matisse is the type of guy who, when the season ends, a lot of guys probably go to Vegas, Turks and Caicos (Islands), Miami," Redick said when asked to describe Thybulle after he joined the Lakers in the offseason.

"He finds a cabin in Montana to go be by himself and meditate for two weeks.

"The first time I met Matisse was in September of 2021. We missed each other by a season in Philly. I had retired the day before and had cried most of the day.

"When we went to Philly to do the podcast, I'd worn sunglasses. The only time I ever wore sunglasses on the podcast was because my eyes were swollen.

"I was just struck by how thoughtful he was, how he's just a genuine, thoughtful human being.

"It was like, 'Damn it'. I think we said it to each other, maybe on the podcast, maybe not: 'God, we should have been teammates. This would have been awesome'.

"So this is full circle. We're really excited that we got him, and he's doing a lot of really good things on the basketball court.

"He's a better human being."

It's probably no coincidence that Jackson has owned a cabin in Montana since 1973, the setting of a story etched into Lakers folklore. In 1999, Jackson asked Shaquille O'Neal to visit his cabin.

"Our whole championship run began that day in Montana," O'Neal said in his autobiography Shaq Talks Back.

"That's what we needed, a man who wasn't afraid to tell a 350-pound multi-millionaire to move a dead tree off his property."

Shaq arrived at Jackson's, his six NBA championship trophies strategically positioned to gleam in the sunshine, and greeted the future Hall of Famer with a single request: move a dead log off his property onto a nearby island on the lake. He did it without complaint, and the rest is history.

Fast forward to 2026, and Redick said that now that Thybulle is healthy and has put in the work he and his staff asked of him, his impact has been a "pleasant surprise".

"We had a long conversation in July, and he felt like he had figured out some stuff with his body towards the end of last season," Redick added.

"We were able to get him with a routine and stuff. We talked when we had our individual meeting during preseason, and he felt very confident in the plan and in the people that he was working with on our staff.

"I would say pleasantly surprised. Obviously, he's playing great, and he's a big part of what we're trying to do. Him being on the court is a big boost for us."

Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka has often been a punching bag for Lakers fans and critics, but signing Thybulle for USD $3,286,399 and Ziaire Williams for USD $2,845,883 is a coup.

"I think both these guys are disruptive," Redick said.

"It also allows us, against most teams, to match up those two guys against their top two offensive players, which takes some of the workload off of (Austin Reaves) and Luka (Dončić).

"I've said this a number of times over the last two years: we've had a lot of problems, and it's been tough when AR's had to guard primaries, primary ball-handlers at the point of attack. Not because he can't do it, because we're asking him to do a million other things on the offensive end as well.

"It takes some of the stress off of that.

"Then the two of them, with Walker, that's a big, long, disruptive frontcourt. That group has been really good so far."

In four games, Thybulle is shooting 8-for-19 (42.1%) from behind the arc and 12-for-25 (48%) from the field in 23.8 minutes, his most minutes since the 2022-23 season.

Yesterday, in the Lakers' 136-129 loss to Portland (the Lakers' first of the season), he had 5 points on 2-for-5 shooting and 1-for-4 from deep in 22 minutes, with 2 rebounds, 1 assist and 3 turnovers.