Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick addressed his team’s 103-88 loss to the Clippers on Saturday night at Intuit Dome. He confirmed that Luka Doncic exited after halftime with a lower leg contusion, saying, “I saw him hobbling towards the end of the first half. He came to me at halftime, said he couldn’t go. Um, it’s all I have.”
Redick praised his team’s competitiveness despite injuries and shooting struggles. “For, you know, 90% of the guys that played tonight, just an incredible competitive spirit. LeBron led that, but I thought all the guys brought it, and we defended at a high level, made it tough on their stars.”
Reflecting on the team’s defense, Redick added, “After some early non-box outs, I thought we did a better job just pursuing the basketball, getting to 50/50 balls. Highly, highly competitive group today and really proud of them.”
Redick acknowledged the team’s challenges from beyond the arc. “We were 6 for 38 from three. I ran some numbers like an all-time bad shooting game. I was proud that we improved from four for 33, so we got better as the game progressed.”
He also addressed technical fouls and interactions with officials over recent games. “The overall consistency needs to be addressed. It’s something I’m going to talk with Byron about tomorrow. We need to know what it is night-to-night. The definitions just get changed every single night.”
Discussing challenges during the game, Redick explained, “Josh [referee Josh Tiven] came to me and said, ‘I don’t want you to wish your challenge, but there’s a chance…’ The ball got loose because of the charge and then it was deflected. It’s not two separate plays. That’s an insane definition. Insane.”
On James’ performance, Redick said, “He did a terrific job of driving the basketball. Anytime he had Lopez on him, he beat him up from the perimeter. It was a great game from him.”
The Lakers, missing multiple starters, struggled to overcome the Clippers’ shooting and depth. Despite LeBron’s season-high 36 points and Doncic contributing 12 before leaving, Los Angeles fell short against Kawhi Leonard’s 32-point effort and 16 made 3-pointers from the Clippers team.
The Lakers will continue their road trip at Phoenix on Tuesday, while the Clippers host Houston on the same night.
