The 2025-26 NBA season has turned for the Los Angeles Lakers. After a 15-4 start that mostly included games without LeBron James, the Lakers are 4-6 in their last 10 games. It's safe to say head coach JJ Redick isn't happy with this development.
Los Angeles lost its third consecutive game on Christmas in a 119-96 blowout against the Houston Rockets. Not only is it the third straight game the Lakers have lost, but it's the third straight game the Lakers lost by 15 or more points. It's been as ugly as it gets.
Perhaps it was the added stress of the holiday season, but Redick took his post-game media availability as an opportunity to go full scorched Earth on the team he coaches. Redick didn't mince any words, outright calling the Lakers a terrible basketball team.
"We've been a good basketball team and when we haven't, we've been a terrible basketball team. And tonight, we were a terrible basketball team. And that started, legitimately, right away," Redick said. "We don't care enough to like, do the things that are necessary. We don't care enough to be a professional."
JJ Redick's comments about the Lakers feel like a direct shot at LeBron James
Redick didn't outright call out the NBA's all-time leading scorer, but it's hard not to read between the tea leaves as Redick calling out LeBron without outright calling him out. If there were any questions after the first part of his quote above, Redick continued to make it seem even more like a direct shot at LeBron.
"You know, we had it," Redick continuned. "It could change like that. We don't have it right now. When I said the other night, 'it's a matter of making the choice,' and too often we have guys that don't want to make that choice. And it's pretty consistent who those guys are. And so Saturday's practice, I told the guys, it's going to be uncomfortable."
It's hard not to read that as an eye-opening message to LeBron. After all, the Lakers started the season red hot without LeBron and now the season feels like it is slipping away from the team with him back in the fold.
LeBron was a team-worst -33 in Thursday's loss to the Rockets. Rui Hachimura was next worst at -29. Luka Doncic checked in with a -25.
It goes beyond Christmas night, though. While the numbers are still there and he still passes the eye test, the Lakers have simply been worse with LeBron on the court this season. The Lakers' net rating is 9.6 points worse with LeBron on the court than it is with him off the court this year.
That's the worst on/off split of any Laker on the team. Dalton Knecht has the second-worst at -9.3. The difference is that Knecht plays 14 minutes a game; LeBron is meant to be one of the foundational pillars of this basketball test.
With LeBron's serviceable stats and passable eye test, the only other factor that could be hurting the Lakers is the intangibles. And that's exactly what Redick seemed to be calling out after the Lakers' embarrassing loss on Christmas.
Buckle up, Lakers fans. The next few weeks ahead of the NBA trade deadline are bound to be interesting.