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Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick didn't make a single substitution in the second half of Game 4's 116-113 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves. Facing a 3-1 deficit, Lakers' Luka Doncic says fatigue didn't factor into Sunday's loss. However, Los Angeles surrendered a 10-point, fourth-quarter lead, which has led many to believe fans could have seen a different outcome had Redick given his starters a breather.
After the game, Redick said he didn't go into Game 4 planning not to make a sub in the second half. However, Redick also doesn't believe it would have changed the outcome when a reporter asked him if he thinks fatigue played a role, per Lakers Nation's Daniel Starkand.
“No. And you know what, looking back now, what have we scored, 19, 20, 13 in the fourth quarters? It's a trend, more so than [fatigue],” Reddick said. “Our two best players missed layups at the rim. I don't think they missed layups because they were tired.”
After Sunday's loss, a reporter asked Doncic the same question.
“This is the playoffs. Fatigue shouldn’t play any role in this,” Doncic said. “We played a lot of minutes, but it shouldn’t play a role. I think they just executed that on the offensive end during the last minutes.”
Lakers head coach JJ Redick watched Doncic finish 1-for-6 in the final frame, including 0-for-2 from deep. Lakers All-Star LeBron James finished scoreless on 0-for-2 attempts and went 1-for-2 in the third quarter.
Why LeBron James says Lakers can rally back from 3-1
Still, Lakers All-Star LeBron James says don't count team out yet. By taking it one game at a time, he's focused on bouncing back in Game 5.
James revealed his mindset after Sunday's three-point loss to the Timberwolves.
“Obviously you don’t think about winning three, you want to just get the next one,” James said. “That’s the only thing that matters. If not, then the offseason begins… that’s what’s important.”
It wouldn't be the first time James has led his team from being down 1-3 in a best-of-7 series. He did it on the brightest stage there is; the NBA Finals when he guided the Cavs to their franchise's first title in 2016 against the Warriors.
Lakers forward Dorian Finney-Smith reminded reporters after Game 4.
“I’ve seen ‘Bron do it,” Finney-Smith said. “We still feel like we can win this series. We just got to win one game at a time. Obviously we put ourselves in harm’s way, but we got to figure it out as a team.”
The Lakers will host the Timberwolves in Game 5 on Wednesday.
