JJ Redick Says Lakers Are Built for Adversity After 0-3 Hole Against OKC

Los Angeles Lakers' head coach JJ Redick has to make the most out of his current squad if they are to avoid ending their season in Game 4.

JJ Redick Says Lakers Are Built for Adversity After 0-3 Hole Against OKC

Lakers head coach JJ Redick (Image via FirstSportz)

In Short
  • JJ Redick acknowledges the Lakers' struggles due to a lack of depth and injuries to key players.
  • The team has performed well defensively but faces significant challenges against the deeper Oklahoma City Thunder.
  • Redick believes overcoming their 0-3 deficit is possible, but the reliance on star players raises concerns about their playoff viability.

Despite all of their efforts, at least in the first half of every game so far, JJ Redick has not been able to overcome the lack of depth on his Los Angeles Lakers as they stare at an early exit in the second round.

The team’s roster calibration was a sticking point from the start of the season. Yet, the second-year coach managed to lead them to third in the hotly contested Western Conference.

They were able to do that despite facing a plethora of injuries to their top three players. However, when it comes to the playoffs, the deficiencies start to show.

Redick managed to coach his players to perform well defensively. That explains why they managed to keep reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 10 points shy of his regular-season average.

However, the Oklahoma City Thunder’s depth made up for that and more, as they have scored nearly 20 more points than the Lakers this series. When asked whether his team can avoid a potential exit in Game 4, JJ Redick said this:

I mean, being on the Lakers, you feel like your back’s against the wall every game. So I think the whole season has prepared us to be in a position where we’re in.

JJ Redick said

The 41-year-old seems to believe that since his team has been thought of as underdogs all season long, that has helped them overcome anything.

He seems to think, or wants his players and the franchise’s fans to think, that overcoming this 0-3 hole is possible. But he knows all too well that without Luka Doncic and depth, this team is walking on eggshells.

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JJ Redick admits Lakers have maximized their roster

After talking about facing adversity all year, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin asked JJ Redick whether the Lakers have maximized the talent available to them.

I think we’ve done that this year…. We’ve put ourselves in position in three of these games that we were in the mix in the second half, and there’s a reason they’re the world champions, there’s a reason they’re the deepest team in basketball.

JJ Redick replied

The former sharpshooter credited his coaching staff and the front office for building this team. He believes that they have collectively done their best.

At the same time, he credited the Oklahoma City Thunder’s depth. If anything, the Lakers’ depth has been the biggest question mark this season.

Since he cannot and will not call out GM Rob Pelinka for the lackluster job he did this season, it might have been an indirect way of pointing out how he wished he had a deeper roster at his disposal.

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JJ Redick and Lakers are in do-or-die mode

No matter how much Redick tries to avoid blaming the front office, the lack of a deep and capable roster has led his Lakers to struggle whenever the Oklahoma City Thunder attack them late in games.

JJ Redick and LeBron James
JJ Redick and LeBron James (Image via LakeShow/X)

Over-reliance on the top stars can only get you so far. But by Game 4, they can do little other than hope that the big 2 of LeBron James and Austin Reaves can do enough to avoid an embarrassing sweep.

It would not be an embarrassment, considering that everyone who follows basketball knows how lopsided the two rosters are. Even then, the competitor in them would need at least one win to get some sort of satisfaction before heading into the offseason.

When Game 4 tips off tomorrow at Crypto.com Arena, the men in purple and gold have to go pedal to the metal. They cannot take their foot off the gas until they are well and truly in the clear. Only then can this team walk into the offseason with their heads held high.

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