Everything was going right for the the Los Angeles Lakers, heading into their game with the 76ers.
The tough road trip has taken it’s toll on the LA Lakers, just as they were putting a winning run together.
A surprise loss to the 76ers was just one game – but it may have come at a cost, with Anthony Davis suffering an injury. Even just as a precaution, Davis could miss time until the All-Star break.
Davis played only 10 minutes, and while JJ Redick tried to add ‘energy’ into the line-up with Bronny James, it did not work.
A terrific 43-point performance from Tyrese Maxey was too much for the Lakers, who faded to a loss, after just scraping past the Hornets 24 hours earlier.
Speaking to NBA Today, analyst Kendrick Perkins was asked for his thoughts on what the Lakers must do over the coming days.
Perkins veered away from Lakers trade talk, insisting that what is needed in the short-term, is simply a coaching issue for JJ Redick to solve.
He says he has been impressed with Redick as a coach to date, and is looking forward to seeing what he will cook up.
Perkins explained: “I wanna come on here and rant about how Rob Pelinka need to make a move, and get another guy in that’s gonna be a consistent scorer to help AD and ‘Bron out, but I’m not gonna go there.
“Now it’s on JJ Redick to get into his bag. He’s been doing a hell of a job but he has to level up even more, when you missing your arguably best player.
“You can’t rely on a 40-year-old LeBron James, it’s unfair to him. Now let’s see what he does in his line-ups.
“Let’s see what he does with his offensive and defensive adjustments. Who’s he going to rely on? Is it going to be Austin Reaves? Is he going to play Jarred Vanderbilt and Rui Hachimura a lot together?
“I need to see more from JJ, but dammit he has set the standard.”
Redick is unafraid to experiment, as he has shown this season, solving an early December spell when the Lakers seemed to be falling apart.
Just last week, the Lakers defeated the defending champions Celtics. Suddenly they find themselves scrambling, to re-load, after a costly loss in Philly.
The LA Lakers face the NBA’s worst team, the Washington Wizards up next. It’s the perfect opportunity to experiment with new line-ups.
After that it gets a lot harder, facing a New York Knicks team that just destroyed the Grizzlies with a blowout win.
They then face the Clippers, Warriors, and Pacers, before back to back games against the Jazz, before the All-Star break.
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