The Los Angeles Lakers fell 136-108 to the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday night at crypto.com Arena, and head coach JJ Redick focused on defensive execution after Victor Wembanyama’s dominant first half decided the game early. The Western Conference matchup featured a short-handed Lakers lineup facing one of the league’s hottest teams.
Wembanyama scored 40 points with 12 rebounds and put up 37 before halftime, marking the highest-scoring half in the NBA this season. San Antonio controlled the paint and shot 57 percent from the field while extending its winning streak to five games.
Redick did not avoid criticism when discussing his team’s defensive effort. “Not not a lot to take away other than, you know, we suck at defense,” he said after the loss.
The Lakers coach explained that the problems started immediately. “We got blitzed from the beginning… you just come out with zero intent defensively and zero execution,” Redick said, adding that Wembanyama “blitzed us and we didn’t execute what we were trying to do.”
San Antonio scored 44 points in the paint during the first half, repeatedly attacking without resistance. “It was like, you know, one-on-one, no help defense,” Redick said, noting that the staff could have shown “18 clips of us not playing our defense.”
Even with prior scouting success against the French center, Los Angeles struggled to apply its plan. “We’ve done a good job historically… we’ve limited him with our coverages against him. We just didn’t execute those,” he said.
Wembanyama’s aggressive approach forced the Lakers into difficult looks away from the rim. “We took five, we were two for five at the rim in the first half… just not a lot of rim attempts for us,” Redick said while describing how San Antonio’s rim protection changed the offensive flow.
The second-year head coach also addressed the broader impact of the Spurs’ franchise cornerstone. “He’s one of the five best players in the world… there’s such an avoidance of him defensively,” Redick said, adding that the big man “impacts the game in ways that don’t show up in a box score.”
Los Angeles played without Luka Doncic, LeBron James and Austin Reaves, and the rotation lacked consistent shot creation. Luke Kennard and Drew Timme each scored 14 points, while Bronny James added 12 points and six assists off the bench.
Redick highlighted a small positive from the Bronny James’ performance. “In terms of the physicality that we wanted on defense, he had two really good possessions in the first half against Wemby,” he said.
The defeat dropped the Lakers further behind the conference’s top teams as they prepare to host Dallas next, while San Antonio continues its road stretch with a visit to Golden State. Redick emphasized a quick reset, saying there are “always things you can learn,” but the main focus remains improving execution before Thursday’s game.
