Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic will miss Monday’s matchup against the Washington Wizards following a one-game suspension for reaching 16 technical fouls this season. Lakers head coach JJ Redick addressed the situation during Sunday’s practice interview.
Redick said, “He’s disappointed, you know, he wants to be there for his teammates. Again, I’ve talked about this all year, like he plays like he’s not a guy that takes games off and can be banged up and he’s going to play. He was like that when I was a teammate in Dallas.”
The Lakers are using the two-day break to regroup and clean up execution. “It’s as much mental and spiritual and emotional. We didn’t want to have these guys in here long today, but we got a lot done. Watch some film, and clean some stuff up,” Redick said. He emphasized the team’s focus on effort and execution: “I think the effort part has been there very consistently for weeks now. Sometimes when the games are stacked together and travel and all that there can be some small details execution-wise that can have slippage. I think for us especially on the defensive end, we can do some things better.”
Redick also highlighted contributions from players outside the usual rotation. “For tomorrow, we’ve gotten some great contributions from guys that haven’t necessarily been in the nine-man rotation when we’ve been fully healthy. Bronny’s had some good moments, Vando’s had some good moments, Maxi’s had some good moments. But we’re going to need everybody.”
The Lakers are balancing preparation with team bonding activities. Redick explained the role golf has played in cohesion: “It’s funny because when I first got in the NBA, there were a lot of guys that golf and then nobody golfed for a long time. For our team, we have three to five guys, at least three, I know, I think five, that this time last year had never played golf before. And Bronny, Luka, LeBron, I know Dalton, I think Jaxson started to work on his game. It’s a good team bonding thing.”
Despite the suspension, Redick stressed the team’s resilience and focus on upcoming matchups. “You need great effort and you need great execution. That’s the thing I’ve talked about all year. We’re just waiting for them to feel like they’re good enough to go.” He also noted the challenge of preparing against a fast-paced opponent: “The Wizards have a pretty high pace. It’s a challenge that we face a lot. You just gotta set your defense, be able to get back so we can grab and hold.”
The Lakers, 48-26, enter Monday’s game seeking to maintain control of the Western Conference standings without their star guard, testing depth and team cohesion.
