PHOENIX — The situation Lakers Coach JJ Redick found himself in Tuesday night at Mortgage Matchup Center has become all too familiar. Once again, Redick was left fielding questions from reporters after his team looked lethargic and slow-footed in a loss—this time a 132-108 defeat to the Phoenix Suns.
It’s part of an ongoing trend: All of the Lakers’ losses this season have been by at least double digits, contributing to their modest point differential of plus-eight. This comes despite entering Thursday’s Christmas Day matchup against the Houston Rockets with 10 more wins than losses. For context, the Suns—who have three fewer wins and four more losses than the Lakers—are the closest in point differential at plus-29.
Redick openly acknowledged that the Suns fit the description of the type of team that has given the Lakers trouble. “The theme with our team again is like these young teams that move, we just can’t move,” he said. “It’s like we’re stuck in mud.”
The Lakers’ issues went beyond being without 40% of their normal starting lineup (Luka Doncic and Rui Hachimura) due to injuries. On Tuesday, they were outworked, outhustled, and consistently multiple steps behind defensively—a common theme in their defeats.
As Redick put it, many of the Lakers’ struggles came down to making difficult choices. “There [are] shortcuts you can take, or you can do the hard thing, and you can make the second effort or you can sprint back. Or you can’t. It’s just a choice. And there’s a million choices in a game, and you’re very likely not gonna make every choice correctly.
“But can you make the vast majority of them correctly? It gives you a chance to win,” he continued. “It’s not the easy choice. It’s human nature. We all do it. We do it on a daily basis. We make easy choices cause it’s comfortable. Comfortable doesn’t win.”
Veteran guard Marcus Smart echoed Redick’s sentiments. “We’re being real [expletive] right now, and it’s showing,” Smart said. “There’s really no defense, no scheme we can do when we’re giving up offensive rebounds in crucial moments like we are, or guys are getting wherever they want on the court. And there’s no help, there’s no resistance, there’s no urgency.
“And JJ is right. There’s really nothing he can do. It’s on us. We appreciate the coaches for everything they do, but it’s on us when it comes down, ultimately, we got to figure it out.”
The messaging was familiar, which led to different questions. Is there a difference between a team filled with players whose defaults are to play hard and physical versus a team of players that need to be reminded?
“Yeah, that’s accurate,” Redick responded.
Do the Lakers, as currently constructed, have enough guys who play that way?
“No,” Redick responded.
With the guys currently on the roster, can they get enough consistent effort to reach where they need to be defensively?
“I think so,” Redick replied after a three-second pause.
The Lakers, coming off consecutive losses for the first time this season, will get an opportunity to bounce back against the Rockets.
“The guys have been great about responding to challenges, whether that’s been injuries, a loss, poor performance,” Redick said. “A lot of games left. So we gotta continue that trend and we gotta stick together. You’re not gonna have a good taste in your mouth and you’re gonna be thinking about how you played, how the team’s playing. It’s like I told ’em, detach [on Wednesday]. Be with your family. Enjoy the holiday. We’ll all come with the right mentality on Christmas.”
**ROCKETS AT LAKERS**
**When:** Thursday, 5 p.m.
**Where:** Crypto.com Arena
https://www.dailybreeze.com/2025/12/24/jj-redick-delivers-blunt-criticism-of-lakers-defensive-effort/
