The Los Angeles Lakers took Luka Doncic out with two and a half minutes left in the opening quarter in Sunday’s win over the Kings, instead of playing him the entire first. They had success staggering Luka and LeBron James more with Austin Reaves out. Head coach JJ Redick made it clear postgame that this trend will continue moving forward.
The win over the Kings snapped a three-game losing streak, and coach Redick has been critical of Luka’s defense in recent weeks. They are asking him to carry a massive offensive workload, so playing him in shorter bursts could do wonders on both ends of the floor.
Doncic had 34 points, seven assists, five rebounds, three steals, and one block in the victory over the Kings. He only had to play 33 minutes because it was a blowout where coach Redick emptied the bench with four and a half to go. The experiment was a success, and the coach wants to keep it.
Luka Doncic will play shorter stints moving forward
The Lakers wanted to take Luka out with three minutes left in the third quarter, but there was no stoppage in play to get him off the floor. The plan is to play number 77 in nine-minute bursts. He will start the first and third quarters before taking a rest with three minutes to go. The plan is to have him return with nine minutes left in both halves and finish things out.
Redick made it clear that he wants to have one of Luka or LeBron on the floor at all times with Reaves out, but he is not trying to split his stars.
“With AR out, it gives both guys more time to be the quarterback without the other one. Having said that, we ran a lot of stuff to be in two-man action to be part of the play together tonight. It is not like we are trying to keep them apart.”
Redick also had this to say about the experiment.
“We are going to do this for the foreseeable future and just see how it goes. It was good tonight. It is a longer stretch for LeBron. It is a shorter stretch for Luka, but it is not going to diminish either of their overall playing time.”
The Lakers’ head coach has questioned the team’s defensive effort and intensity during a rough six-game stretch where they allowed 122.5 points per game. Redick knows it starts with Luka and LeBron. He can’t ask Doncic to play 12 straight minutes and be fully locked in defensively.
This stagger should allow King James to get a better rhythm and keep Luka fresher. It worked masterfully against the Kings, but tougher tests await. Coach Redick had to try something, and everyone is on board with this change.
Luka Doncic was dominant against the Kings. The Lakers won his 33 minutes by 22 points, and he was clearly more locked in defensively. It is just one game, but the shorter bursts could be the start of a positive trend. Fans know Luka will be among the NBA’s scoring leaders. The Lakers' contending comes down to his defense. Having more energy should lead to increased production.
The Los Angeles Lakers won their first game after making this change to go to 20-10 on the season. It felt like the sky was falling during their three-game losing streak, but Luka gives them a chance against any opponent. Coach Redick and the Lakers are still figuring things out. If they make an upgrade at the trade deadline, no team will want to face LA in the playoffs. This could be the start of maximizing Doncic and the Lakers' title odds. All fans can do is stay tuned to find out.