The Los Angeles Lakers dropped their third straight game on Thursday night, and head coach JJ Redick admitted the team made an effort to play LeBron James more without Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves. The coach is reacting to the team’s struggles when the three stars play together, and the reality that his team only wins the minutes with James when he is by himself. It forced a switch that didn’t quite pay immediate dividends.
The star trio is still trying to figure things out. LeBron was injured to start the year, and Doncic and Reaves have missed time since LBJ returned. The King admitted they need better health to get things figured out down the stretch, so it should be no surprise that coach Redick is still searching for answers.
The numbers don’t lie. The Lakers are best with Doncic and Reaves sharing the floor this season. Their next best grouping is LeBron without the other stars. Coach Redick admitted he tried to lean into those numbers against the Suns and found a lineup that worked in the process.
JJ Redick wanted to play LeBron James more without his other stars
The talk of the trio not working has reached the national discourse. The Lakers have a negative-7.8 net rating when their three stars play together, according to Databallr. They are plus 8.8 with just LeBron on the floor, and plus 17.9 when Doncic and Reaves share the court.
After the tough loss in Phoenix, coach Redick had this to say when asked about what worked offensively.
“I think that lineup that we played tonight. I don’t know if it was our first time playing it, but it was something we talked about pregame. Letting Luka and AR play longer together. Letting LeBron play on his own for a little bit. There were seven minutes of that Jake, Luke, AR, Luka, and Jaxson lineup, and that was a good lineup for us tonight.”
The coach saw success. Luka had 41 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists as the Lakers won his 39 minutes by nine points. Reaves played 36 minutes and was also a plus-nine. LeBron was plus-five in his 35 on the floor. If the Lakers can’t make the Big 3 work together, Redick is wise to stagger in the most effective ways.
There is no avoiding playing them together when all three are playing 35-plus minutes every night. The Lakers had been using LeBron and Reaves more and letting Luka run the show solo. They’ve won the minutes with just Doncic by 5.3 points per 100 possessions this season, but lost the LeBron and AR time by 4.5.
This is a LeBron problem. The Lakers are fine with just Luka, just AR, or Luka and Reaves. They have sadly only found success with James when he plays solo. LeBron is arguably the GOAT, so he must figure things out. He can play with anyone. It is all about finding the right ways and making it so their porous defense can tread water.
The Los Angeles Lakers still have a LeBron James problem to solve. Head coach JJ Redick is already taking steps to mitigate the issue. Fans should expect to see more solo LeBron lineups moving forward, but the Lakers must figure out how to thrive with their Big 3. If not, it will be a quick postseason exit and nothing but disappointment in Hollywood.