A nine-game winning streak snapped and a night of underwhelming performances from their stars. That summed up the Los Angeles Lakers’ outing against the Detroit Pistons on Monday night, and no one was more disappointing than LeBron James, especially in the first half of the game.
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James may not be the main man on the Lakers anymore, with that baton having been passed to Luka Doncic before the season started. But the 41-year-old, even in a tertiary role, scoring zero points in a half against the #1 team in the Eastern Conference? That’s not a very sign, but something that head coach JJ Redick was ready to slide.
Redick, post-game, had words of consolation for James, and pointed to his playmaking in the first two quarters of the game. It was also a clear indication that the Lakers boss does not expect him to take over scoring responsibilities from those who were actually supposed to shine: Doncic and Reaves.
“I thought he played a really unselfish game,” Redick said about James. “Ended up with 10 assist. We missed him a couple times… We ran some plays for him and he did a really good job of not just trying to score and make the right play like he always does and got 10 assists.”
JJ Redick on LeBron scoreless 1st half tonight:
“I thought he played a really unselfish game. Ended up with 10 assist. We missed him a couple times… We ran some plays for him and he did a really good job of not just trying to score and make the right play like he always does… pic.twitter.com/w7IjBz3TlQ
— NBA Courtside (@NBA__Courtside) March 24, 2026
10 assists in an NBA ball game is good. And James, sort of, made up for his poor showing in the second half, scoring 12 points. But it was the second quarter that did most of the damage in the game. The Lakers were outscored 42-25.
In reality, there’s not much James could have done on what was otherwise an off night for even Doncic and Reaves. They scored 32 and 24 respectively, but didn’t have that extra something needed to get the Lakers over the line in a close game like this. On top of that, there were some dodgy calls made by the officials too, which of course, will always be speculation and won’t lead to a different outcome.
James for one, has gone on to accept his role on the Lakers, and fully embraces being away from the spotlight. “It’s the role that I’m playing for the ballclub. In order for us to win ball games, it’s the role that I’m playing… And that’s just how the game was going,” The King said.
Would things have been different had Redick played offense through Bron instead of using him as a dime-machine? Maybe.
