The Los Angeles Lakers have played two preseason games so far, although not too many takeaways can be gleaned from them considering that Luka Doncic and LeBron James were out of the lineup. Still, newly extended head coach JJ Redick is picking up right where he left off with his intense style of coaching.
Recently, Redick didn't exactly provide a glowing review of what he's seen from the Lakers' defense so far through two games.
“JJ Redick said the Lakers’ transition defense in their first two preseason games was ‘dogs***,'” reported Lakers insider Jovan Buha on X, formerly Twitter.
Transition defense was an area of concern for the Lakers last year during their first round playoff exit against the Minnesota Timberwolves, although, again, it's important to note that many of the team's key players were out during each of the first two preseason games.
Can the Lakers defend at an elite level?
The Lakers knew heading into this offseason that they were going to need to upgrade in the point of attack defense department, and they attempted to do just that by signing 2022 NBA Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart on the buyout market.
Smart has not been able to stay healthy since he was traded from the Boston Celtics in 2022-23, but when he is on the floor, he remains an elite perimeter defender who can knock down the occasional open jumper on the other end of the floor.
Still, it's unlikely that Smart would start over Austin Reaves, giving the Lakers a very defensively challenged starting backcourt of Reaves and Doncic. Inserting Smart next to those two would make Los Angeles one of the smaller lineups in the NBA, when size has been a strength of the team in previous years.
Clearly, Redick has some things to sort out before the Lakers take the floor for opening night. Los Angeles will begin its regular season on October 21 with a game against the Golden State Warriors at home.
