The defensive issues for the Los Angeles Lakers seem to be getting worse as this season goes on. After Tuesday night’s blowout loss to the Phoenix Suns, the Lakers are 4-5 in their last nine games. In those five losses, the Lakers are giving up over 123 points per game and losing by an average of 18 points.
Coming into the season, the Lakers’ ability to defend at a high level was the biggest concern and while they have had some moments where they’ve held their own, things have been slipping as of late. And veteran Marcus Smart did not mince words when discussing it after the latest loss.
The former Defensive Player of the Year was open about how bad the defense has been and put the onus on the players to fix it before it’s too late, via Dave McMenamin of ESPN:
“We doing s—,” Smart said. “We’re being real s—ty right now, and it’s showing. … Every team goes through it trying to figure it out. You just pray that it happens early and we can fix it before it’s too late. But yeah, there’s really no defense, no scheme we can do when we’re giving up offensive rebounds in crucial moments like we are, or guys are getting wherever they want on the court.
“And there’s no help, there’s no resistance, there’s no urgency. So, it’s tough. And JJ is right. There’s really nothing he can do. It’s on us.”
There is no sugarcoating the defensive issues that have plagued the Lakers as of late. They are struggling at all levels, being unable to contain at the point of attack, being slow or flat out missing rotations, and clearing the glass if they do force a miss.
The Suns shot 59% from the field while also grabbing 12 offensive rebounds on the few times they did miss. When things are that bad, there is just no way to win the game. The good news is that Smart and the rest of the Lakers aren’t pointing fingers and putting the blame on themselves. Now they need to figure out how to fix these issues before this season spirals downhill.
Lakers coach JJ Redick: Playing hard is a choice
There were certainly a lot of issues in the Lakers’ loss to the Suns, and head coach JJ Redick, rightfully, was not happy with his team’s performance. But aside from any schemes, Redick was focused on the Lakers’ overall effort, which he believes is a choice the team isn’t making right now.
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