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JJ Redick promises Lakers will bring ‘right mentality’ on Christmas vs. Rockets
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- JJ Redick promises Lakers will bring ‘right mentality’ on Christmas vs. Rockets
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JJ Redick promises Lakers will bring 'right mentality' on Christmas vs. Rockets appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
The Los Angeles Lakers suffered their first back-to-back losses this season following their 132-108 defeat against the Phoenix Suns . They had been coming off a loss to the LA Clippers this past Saturday, and the Lakers will be looking to right the ship and get back in the win column as they host the Houston Rockets on Christmas Day. Following the Lakers' loss to the Suns, head coach JJ Redick vowed that the team would have the necessarily mentality for their holiday showdown, as per Spectrum Sports.
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"The guys have been great about responding to challenges, whether that's been injuries, a loss, a poor performance. We got a lot of games left, so we got to continue that trend and we got to stick together," Redick said. "Coming off these two games, 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. I told them to detach tomorrow, be with their family, enjoy the holiday, we'll all come with the right mentality on Christmas."
Amid the Lakers' recent losing streak, and in terms of their play overall this season, the defense has been in question. The 132 points the Lakers surrendered against the Suns was tied for the second-highest point total they've given up this season. The most amount of points they've given up was the 135 dropped on them by the Utah Jazz last week, albeit in a win.
Against the Suns, Redick explained how he felt like the Lakers had exhausted every option defensively before there was nothing left to throw at their opponent.
"We tried zone, they got a layup and an open three. . .we didn't get the ball iced in pick and roll. On the second possession in zone, they got middle, we didn't go under, they get a layup," Redick said. "You don't do the things we're trying to do to sort of protect and keep the ball on the side, you get exploited."
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"We've had some games where we didn't things well, but I think the theme with our team again is like, these young teams that move, we just can't move. It's like we're stuck in mud," Redick continued. "Zone didn't work, we went to a 15 in the second half, one through five switching, that didn't work. At the point, you're out of options."
Following the loss to the Suns, the Lakers were ranked 25th in the NBA in defensive rating at 118.9, as per StatMuse. Their next opportunity to turn things around is Christmas Day against the Rockets. While nothing is concrete, there is a possibility Luka Doncic could make his return to the lineup that day.
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