Toward the end of a respectable campaign (finished fourth in the West at 53-29), the Los Angeles Lakers received a brutal blow that all but ended their playoff hopes: injuries to Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves.
In the face of overwhelming odds, the Lakers did not hang their head in defeat. Instead, over the past week, head coach JJ Redick has been hard at work with his team, hitting specific goals designed to prepare them for the battles to come. According to Redick, in a pre-game chat with the media on Saturday, the process has ensured that every player is going into this season both mentally and physically ready.
“I feel like we had a good week,” said Redick, via Mike Trudell. “We executed what we wanted to do, both from the basketball game planning side, but also working with performance to make sure, based on our feedback from last year, and their feedback from last year, that we hit our targets for each day for jumping, load, acceleration, volume, intensity, and all that stuff. We were able to do that, and I think our guys, from a mental and physical standpoint, are good to go.”
Rebounding and ball security were big points of emphasis for the Lakers this week, and for good reason. Those are two areas the Rockets know how to exploit, and they’ve used them to win games all season. If the Lakers can just play clean basketball and stick to JJ Redick’s game plan, it may just buy enough time for Luka Doncic’s miracle comeback.
If not, then at least the Lakers have four-time champion, LeBron James. Regardless of what he can provide on the court (averages of 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, 7.2 assists, 1.2 steals, 0.2 blocks on 51.5% shooting this season), his leadership alone is a major boost for the Lakers, as many players are sure to benefit from his wisdom.
“[LeBron’s] got the ultimate playoff experience, given that he’s been in 10 Finals and done 20 or so of these things,” added Redick. “DA’s been a starting center in the Finals, and Marcus has been in the Finals and multiple Conference Finals. Maxi’s been in the Finals and the Conference Finals. There’s a lot in the group that we can lean on.”
Ultimately, the Lakers would give anything to have their stars healthy and active right now. Before the injuries, they were on track to make a Finals run, but it’s gotten to the point where they are just trying to survive. With a championship on the line, the pressure now falls on LeBron to step up and rise to the occasion as he has so many times before. But, at 41, it remains to be seen how long he can sustain this level of play.
For Redick, he’s going to trust the work, and what he’s seen in practice this week has given him confidence that his team can make the series competitive. Of course, that doesn’t mean it will be easy. With the odds stacked against them, only a dedicated, cohesive effort can carry the Lakers to victory, and Redick believes it’s within reach.
