The Lakers trailed by 10 points at halftime Tuesday night. When asked what happened who turned a game they were in into a blowout victory in Phoenix, JJ Redick was blunt.
“They scored on the first 13 possessions of the second half,” the Lakers coach said of the Suns.
Advertisement
The Lakers lost consecutive games for the first time this season, getting crushed by the Suns 132-108. Los Angeles was without Luka Doncic, but the Lakers have a respectable 116.2 offensive rating when Doncic is off the court this season (which would rank 11th overall in the league). What Redick called out was the Lakers’ defense — which ranks in the bottom 10 in the league whether Doncic is on the court or not — and particularly the effort on that side of the court.
“The theme of our team, these young teams that are moving, we just can’t move. It’s like we’re stuck in the mud,” Redick said.
When asked if the Lakers have enough players who are inherently good defenders and put all their effort into that, Redick was blunt.
“No.”
Advertisement
He placed the responsibility for the defensive effort at the feet of the players.
“It’s just about making a choice. It’s about making a choice,” Redick said. “There are shortcuts you can take or you can do the hard thing and you can do the second effort or you can go back or you can’t. It’s just a choice. And there are a million choices in a game, and you probably won’t get every choice right. But can you do the vast majority of them right? That gives you a chance to win.”
Los Angeles’ defense will be tested by another young team that can make a move on Christmas Day when the Lakers host the Rockets. This is a game in the national spotlight because of LeBron James and Kevin Durant, but the winner will depend on which team can defend (the Rockets have struggled on that front lately).
