LeBron James Gets Praised by JJ Redick While Blasting Others

It was evident Wednesday night during the Los Angeles Lakers’ 131-114 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies that JJ Redick is a very demanding coach who doesn’t handle defeat well. Redick acknowledged LeBron James‘ “fantastic” 39-point performance and his role as the “hardest” player on the court during the loss during his postgame news conference.

However, he left the podium when asked how he would respond to what he saw as the team’s lack of effort. According to Redick, “I just did,” when asked.

Stars Anthony Davis and Rui Hachimura were not playing for the Lakers. Hachimura was unable to participate because of an illness, and Davis is coping with a bruise on his left heel.

The dynamic of this team is drastically altered by Davis’ absence in particular. With an NBA-high 32.6 points, 11.6 rebounds, and outstanding defense per game, he is playing what may be the finest basketball of his career.

Without Davis, it was particularly clear how weak the Lakers’ defense is. The Grizzlies made 17 of their 34 three-point attempts and shot 51.6 percent from the field. Jaren Jackson Jr., Jaylen Wells, and Ja Morant all scored 20 points.

JJ Redick backs LeBron James and calls out D’Angelo Russell

LeBron James scored 21 points, yet he had the worst minus-21 of the entire team. Redick notably called out D’Angelo Russell, who has a 37.5 field-goal percentage and is having a poor start to the season. Russell was benched halfway through the third quarter.

Regarding his choice to remove Russell, Redick stated: “Just level of compete, attention to detail, some of the things we’ve have talked with him about for a couple of weeks,”  “And at times, he’s been really good with that stuff and other times, it’s just reverting back to certain habits. It wasn’t like a punishment. I just felt like for us to have a chance to win this game, that was the route we wanted to take.”

For the first time this season, the Lakers have fallen to.500 after losing four of their last five games after opening 3-0. With a defensive rating of 118.8, they rank third in the NBA, behind only the New Orleans Pelicans and Toronto Raptors.

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