Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick praised Walker Kessler’s immediate impact while acknowledging the team’s offensive problems after a 101-89 preseason loss to the Golden State Warriors in Las Vegas on Tuesday.
Kessler finished with 11 points and nine rebounds in 16 minutes, making an impression in the first half before sitting out the remainder of the game. Redick highlighted the center’s activity, rebounding and rim protection while pointing to the Lakers’ broader struggles on the glass.
“I think he’s a great fit for our team,” Redick said. “I thought he did a nice job of running the floor, crashing, had some terrific rebounds in traffic, protected the rim. Just really, really good first half from him.”
Redick also noted how the Lakers’ defensive rebounding deteriorated after halftime, when Kessler was no longer on the floor.
“They had two offensive rebounds at halftime and they had 13 the second half,” Redick said. “He didn’t play in the second half. That’s an area of concern for preseason games. We’ve got to do a better job of rebounding in general, whether he’s on the floor or not.”
The coach said Kessler played under a minutes restriction after missing time, with the Lakers aiming to give him as much first-half action as made sense. Redick added that the center’s eventual rotation remains undecided.
The Lakers’ offensive performance was a greater concern. After taking a 63-50 lead into halftime, Los Angeles scored only 26 points in the second half, including 13 in the fourth quarter, as Golden State completed its comeback.
[td_flex_block_1 category_id="" custom_title="MORE FOR YOU" header_color="#e91e63" td_filter_default_txt="" tag_slug="" sort="random_7_day" tdc_css="eyJhbGwiOnsibWFyZ2luLXJpZ2h0IjoiMjUiLCJtYXJnaW4tYm90dG9tIjoiMjUiLCJtYXJnaW4tbGVmdCI6IjI1IiwicGFkZGluZy10b3AiOiIxMSIsInBhZGRpbmctcmlnaHQiOiIyNSIsInBhZGRpbmctYm90dG9tIjoiMTEiLCJwYWRkaW5nLWxlZnQiOiIyNSIsImJhY2tncm91bmQtY29sb3IiOiIjZjNmNGY2IiwiZGlzcGxheSI6IiIsIi0tdGRiLXNjcm9sbC1hbmltIjoibm9uZSJ9LCJwaG9uZSI6eyJtYXJnaW4tcmlnaHQiOiIwIiwibWFyZ2luLWxlZnQiOiIwIiwicGFkZGluZy1yaWdodCI6IjE1IiwicGFkZGluZy1sZWZ0IjoiMTUiLCJkaXNwbGF5IjoiIn0sInBob25lX21heF93aWR0aCI6NzY3fQ==" mx3f_title_font_transform="" mx3f_title_font_weight="700" title_tag="h3" all_modules_space="0" video_popup="" image_size="td_218x150" image_height="65" image_floated="eyJwaG9uZSI6ImZsb2F0X2xlZnQifQ==" autoplay_vid="" show_vid_t="none" modules_category="image" modules_category_margin="eyJhbGwiOiI1cHgiLCJwaG9uZSI6IjVweCJ9" modules_extra_cat="hide" show_author="none" show_date="none" show_com="none" show_review="none" show_excerpt="none" show_audio="none" show_btn="none" f_title_font_size="15" f_title_font_line_height="1.25" f_title_font_weight="600" f_title_font_spacing="-0.2" cat_bg="#e16e00" modules_divider="solid" category_ids="-4430,-5489,-11" show_cat="" modules_on_row="eyJhbGwiOiIzMy4zMzMzMzMzMyUiLCJwaG9uZSI6IjEwMCUifQ==" limit="3" meta_info_align="" modules_divider_color="#333333" image_width="eyJhbGwiOiIxMDAiLCJwaG9uZSI6IjQwIn0=" meta_info_border_color="" modules_border_color="" modules_gap="15" m_padding="eyJwaG9uZSI6IjE1cHggMHB4IDE1cHggMHB4In0=" art_title="eyJwaG9uZSI6IjBweCAwcHggMHB4IDE1cHgifQ==" video_icon="eyJwaG9uZSI6IjIwIn0=" f_cat_font_size="eyJwaG9uZSI6IjgifQ=="]Redick praised the Lakers’ ball movement during their strong stretch but identified recurring problems with turnovers and organization, particularly when the team’s primary ball handlers were unavailable.
“I thought we did a great job, particularly in the second quarter, just moving the basketball, getting advantages, keeping advantages, finishing advantages, making the easy play,” Redick said.
He then explained two issues that have persisted throughout the preseason.
“When we play in a crowd, we turn the ball over,” Redick said. “And then the sort of non-AR Luka minutes without Collin out there, we just have been, that’s when our, the other minutes were like at 93% organization rate. Those minutes were like 60%.”
Austin Reaves delivered one of the game’s best individual performances, recording 28 points and seven assists in 25 minutes. Redick praised the guard’s offensive ability and emphasized the balance between providing structure and allowing creative players to operate freely.
“He’s just a fantastic offensive player,” Redick said. “The thing with him is always like giving him like a construct of what we want to do within our organized offense, but then allowing him the freedom to be Austin.”
Redick also addressed Bronny James’ difficult preseason, saying the young guard had practiced well despite struggling during the four exhibition games. He noted that the groups James had played with, including two-way players and recently arrived teammates, had made it harder for him to find rhythm.
“I don’t think he’s played well in the four preseason games, but he’s had good practices,” Redick said. “Some of it’s just rhythm. Some of it’s who he’s playing with.”
Despite the defeat, Redick said he had a clear idea of the team’s potential based on training camp and September performances. With the regular season approaching, he stressed that the Lakers’ less-established ball handlers must improve their organization and be ready when opportunities arise.
