Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick stressed physicality and discipline as key factors in his team’s 94-85 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves Tuesday night at Crypto.com Arena.
Head coach JJ Redick, leading the Lakers through his first postseason as an NBA coach, credited the team’s defensive effort and improved physicality in the bounce-back victory.
“We were very physical tonight—as were they,” Redick said postgame, emphasizing what he saw as the defining factor in Game 2 compared to the series opener.
The Lakers opened the contest with a dominant 34-15 first quarter, setting the tone with aggressive defense and smart halfcourt execution.
Redick noted that it took his team “about two and a half quarters in Game 1 to get to that level of physicality,” but saw the urgency from the opening tip in Game 2.
Luka Doncic led all scorers with 31 points while adding 12 rebounds and nine assists, relentlessly attacking Minnesota in isolation and converting all 11 of his free throw attempts.
Despite a late Timberwolves run that cut the lead to 11 in the third quarter, Redick remained composed but decisive on the sideline.
“Not frustration—just coaching,” he said about calling a fiery timeout captured on national TV. “It was building, and I just wanted to make sure everybody was on the same page.”
Redick said he wanted to hit the “urgency button” when momentum shifted, but made it clear that he reserves such moments. “It’s not something I want to do. It’s something I’m more than comfortable doing,” he said.
The Lakers held Minnesota to 38% shooting overall and just 20% from deep, limiting their ball movement and forcing halfcourt possessions with strong transition defense.
“Our offense actually helped quite a bit with the transition stuff,” Redick added. “When they did [get out], like AR late in the game taking the charge, we were able to stop them from scoring or from even getting a quick shot up.”
Austin Reaves contributed 16 points and helped close out the game by drawing a critical offensive foul on Anthony Edwards late in the fourth.
LeBron James posted 21 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists, anchoring a chippy contest that included 46 combined personal fouls.
Rui Hachimura, who took a hit to the face and briefly wore a protective mask, returned to finish with 11 points and two steals.
“He played like a warrior tonight,” Redick said of Hachimura. “Some plays at the rim that don’t show up in the box score. He was awesome.”
Julius Randle led the Timberwolves with 27 points but committed five fouls. Anthony Edwards followed with 25 on 10-of-22 shooting.
Redick acknowledged the physical nature of the matchup and the likelihood of more low-scoring affairs.
“I think the mentality for both teams is to have a rock fight,” he said. “But… all of a sudden somebody starts making threes, there’s a few turnovers, that leads to a high-transition half, and somebody scores 120. That’s just how basketball works.”
Game 3 is scheduled for Friday night at Target Center in Minneapolis as the teams look to seize a 2-1 advantage.
