The Los Angeles Lakers endured a difficult Tuesday evening away in Phoenix, losing by a 24-point margin to the Phoenix Suns. These things happen, even for teams aspiring for the championship, and one loss shouldn’t cause this much panic. But as far as the 25/26 Lakers are concerned, it was a consequence of a regular pattern noted by fans and journalists.
Advertisement
Throughout the season, the vulnerability of the Lakers’ defense has been pointed out on various occasions. And against the Suns, it was on full display during their 132-108 loss.
There were also tensions on the bench, with head coach JJ Redick singling Dalton Knecht out, criticizing him for not knowing the meaning of a “Flood” play. It basically means overloading one side of the court with players in different sides, which makes the defense scramble. Redick didn’t like that Knecht couldn’t follow his plan. But fans threw shade at Reddick instead.
The main consensus, even among those who aren’t particularly fans of Knecht was that Reddick showcased terrible coaching. “I don’t even like Dalton but this is terrible coaching,” a fan wrote on X.
There were also some who tried to explain that Redick seems to reliant on Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, two of the best players on the Lakers team this season. “Maybe give your players reps and let them learn instead of playing Luka and Reaves 38 mpg until they injured,” said another fan.
The Lakers are currently 4th in the West and do seem to be prime contenders for a spot in the Conference Finals. But that doesn’t mean all is well. Remove Doncic, Reaves, and LeBron James from the side and there would be real problems, both in offense and defense.
“This is what makes JJ a pathetic coach!! He has completely killed knecht’s confidence and now he s blaming knecht! Bro JJ improve ur coaching first. First give Knecht the confidence by giving him proper mins with freedom to do his best,” another fan added, lambasting Reddick.
