The Los Angeles Lakers are out of the NBA Cup after losing to the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday, and coach JJ Redick was not a happy man. Redick was visibly frustrated and voiced his concern about the team’s defense being exposed.
In his postgame press conference, Redick told reporters that the Lakers’ defense was the main reason for their 132-119 loss. He pointed out failing to force turnovers, letting the Spurs make runs at the end of quarters and not defending shooters enough.
Redick was also blunt about other teams having better defense than them, so it was something that they have to figure out sooner rather than later.
“Very few teams don’t have something that you can expose. We’ve consistently got exposed at the same things,” Redick said.
Among the teams with 15 wins or more, the Lakers have the lowest defensive rating at 116.7. It ranks 21st in the entire NBA, which isn’t a good sign for a team looking to contend for a championship.
Redick Happy With Marcus Smart’s Return
After a six-game absence due to a back injury, Marcus Smart returned to the Lakers’ lineup against the Spurs. Smart came off the bench and played 28 minutes. He finished with 26 points and three rebounds, making eight 3-point shots.
JJ Redick liked what he saw from Smart aside from some rush shots that were avoidable.
“I think he came in with a lot of energy. A couple sort of rush possessions offensively, but in terms of the try in care factor defensively, definitely. Definitely had it, and then he was able to make some shots in the second half.”
Smart has been one of the Lakers’ best defensive players this season, along with Jarred Vanderbilt. The problem with Vanderbilt is that he doesn’t have the same offensive prowess as Smart.
It’s hard to operate for players like Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves and LeBron James if they have a player who can’t knock down shots. Maybe it’s time for the Lakers’ front office to find more defensive players before the trade deadline.
Lakers Monitoring Herb Jones
One of the players the Lakers can target is Herb Jones of the New Orleans Pelicans. Jones is one of the best perimeter defenders in the league today, with one All-Defensive First Team in his name back in 2024.
According to Forbes’ Evan Sidery, the Lakers are expected to monitor the situation in New Orleans and try to acquire Jones. They will also reportedly ditch their plans to get Andrew Wiggins from the Miami Heat.
“The Lakers will pursue Herb Jones on the trade market, once the 3-22 Pelicans officially go into sell mode soon. After pursuing Andrew Wiggins throughout the summer, Los Angeles is now gearing up to aggressively chase Jones utilizing expiring contracts and future draft capital,” Sidery wrote.
Jones recently returned from a calf injury that caused him to miss eight games. He also signed an extension this past offseason, so he’s ineligible to get traded until after January 14, 2026.
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