The Lakers “recalibrate” after Austin Reaves’ injury, three consecutive defeats
After the Lakers’ third straight loss on Thursday, JJ Redick promised things would get “uncomfortable.” The second-year coach, frustrated after the team delivered a lump of coal during the Houston Rockets’ Christmas Day blowout, said he couldn’t bear to revisit the same tired story. Resting his elbow on the table during his postgame press conference, Redick called out players who don’t try hard enough on defense or don’t play hard.
Two days later he appeared before journalists with a different tone.
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“Recalibration,” Redick said calmly of the message delivered during Saturday’s team meeting. “Reconnection”.
Redick has calmed down, but the Lakers are still under fire. Not only are they looking to snap a season-high three-game losing streak at home Sunday against the Sacramento Kings (6:30 p.m.), but the Lakers (19-10) are also still searching for their first home win in December and must navigate this defining moment without guard Austin Reaves.
Reaves was diagnosed with a Grade 2 strain in his left calf on Friday and will be re-evaluated in four weeks. The latest setback comes less than two weeks after he was sidelined with a “slight” strain in the same calf that kept him out for three games.
Reaves is averaging career highs in points (26.6), assists (6.3) and rebounds (5.2), and his rise from undrafted rookie to potential first-time All-Star has been one of the feel-good stories of the team’s season. Reaves scored a career-high 51 points against Sacramento in October, saving the Lakers in a game without LeBron James or Luka Doncic and showing Reaves’ potential in a starring role.
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Read more: The Lakers protect Austin Reaves for at least a month due to a calf injury
Now without their second leading scorer, the Lakers are looking to their supporting cast to step up.
“We just need our guys to be stars in their roles,” Redick said. “Certainly from a high-end talent standpoint, it detracts. But it doesn’t change the non-negotiables or how we’re trying to play.”
After losing their last three games by an average of 20.7 points per game, the Lakers needed to regain confidence with their non-negotiable points heading into Saturday’s matchup. The session was uncomfortable in the way that facing the truth can be uncomfortable, Redick said. It wasn’t just the coaches’ lessons, but also the players who spoke.
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The top priority was to create more clarity, Redick said. The team needed to get back to building their defensive fundamentals after so many lineup changes due to injuries. The Lakers have used 16 different starting lineups in 29 games and must readjust their rotation again in Reaves’ absence.
“Unity is going to have to be emphasized to the point where it seems like an exaggeration,” center Deandre Ayton said, “and become a habit. And that’s what winners do. And it’s pretty easy for this team. It’s just that there’s always a different group out there and we’re going to get through it for sure.”
Forward Rui Hachimura said coaches reminded players of the team’s three pillars that once again were displayed on a screen in the practice gym Saturday: championship habits, championship communication, championship form.
Read more: “We don’t have that now.” Conclusions on the Lakers’ third consecutive defeat
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“We talk about everyone, players, coaches, we just have to huddle,” Hachimura said. “We had a good stretch in the beginning and now, I don’t know, we got relaxed or we got tired of winning, you know, but we just stopped doing what we’re supposed to do.”
The Lakers are 29th in the NBA in defensive rating over their last 15 games, giving up 122.2 points per 100 possessions. This is a significant drop from their 113.7 rating in their first 14 games in which they went 10-4.
Since James returned, the Lakers’ preferred starting lineup — Doncic, Reaves, James, Ayton and Hachimura — has a net rating of minus-19.9 in seven games.
Offensively, the Lakers have lacked organization since James returned, Redick acknowledged. James declined to speak to reporters after practice.
“Too many random possessions,” Redick said. “It’s up to me.”
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This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.