There’s drama playing out in LA again. The Lakers enter the 2025-26 season with the same old questions and a defense that still hasn’t found its identity. We’ve spoken about Austin Reaves all summer and how more is being expected of him on the court. Is that sustainable? Yet at the center of it all, of course, is LeBron James backing his coach publicly, and JJ Redick, in a candid Coaches Corner breakdown, quietly admitted the roster has a gap the front office still hasn’t filled. 

Tim Legler led the session. Redick obliged, walking through the play and pointing out the small, painful realities. “We talk all the time in isolation, particularly against guys that can knock down 3s like Klay Thompson. We want to use that stick hand. Rui Hachimura is the best guy on our team using that stick hand in isolation. So he prevents the three and then, look, we’re a team defense. We don’t have we didn’t last year. We’re not going to this year. We don’t have lockdown defenders,” he bluntly said, before adding how he combats the problem.

“So we rely on our help defense. We rely on our ship presentation.” Legler and Redick replayed the sequence, pausing at the contact part and the defensive rotation that followed. The point was that without a true stopper, the Lakers must collectively earn stops.

JJ Redick also got specific about whom he trusts on the perimeter. He praised Austin Reaves’ willingness to take charges and stressed how small lineups force constant switching, which is essentially a setup that invites mismatches and requires players to lay their bodies on the line.

The comments landed on social channels and drew a quick public nod from LeBron. He reposted the clip initially shared by Evan Sidery, adding, “Love to see this. Hot take culture so tired. @mindthegamepod.” It might’ve only taken the King 9 words, but he made it clear that he stands with Redick’s accountability-first system.

Notably, this is not the first time the Lakers have faced backlash against their roster. Back in August, Ben Rohrbach, an NBA Insider, noted in one of his articles, “Pelinka has constantly tinkered with the roster in the years since the title, mostly to negative results, until this year’s trade for Luka Dončić fell into his lap. Whether the Lakers should trust Pelinka to construct another contender is a separate question.”

While that is still outside noise, LeBron James’ public backing of JJ Redick on his indirect call to Rob Pelinka is loud enough to be heard. Redick only said what many inside the building already know. However, the front office has pushed offense and versatility this offseason. Result: they’re loaded with switchable wings and scorers. Timing? Not ideal. LeBron James is out for the first few weeks due to sciatica, and the Lakers don’t appear to be in a rush to bring him back.

JJ Redick’s plan to cope with the Lakers’ defensive struggles

In the same video analysis, JJ Redick was asked about the moments when a bigger center altered the picture. “I think it’s just simplifying things to be honest with you Tim. We did a lot game to game last year and a lot of that was based on the teams we were playing or who was available in our lineup and our ability to play with smaller lineups. So we had different switching groups,” the Lakers head coach noted.

But that’s not a secret, right? On paper, the Lakers were busy this offseason. Marcus Smart and Deandre Ayton came in for spacing and rim presence. Yet the defensive results Redick highlighted about rotations giving up paint points, mismatches at the rim, and late cuts that invite collisions suggest those moves aren’t a cure-all.

Redick’s frankness also carried a coaching message. “I think just having a base defense for a full season with the same group and really just creating clarity night-to-night. So, if that’s a five, hey, here’s what the coverage looks like. Our switching group. Here’s what that is every single night,” he said.

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While the Lakers will probably win many nightly races to 120 points, it hardly appears to be a successful championship formula. Here’s our starting lineup prediction for the opening night: Doncic, Reaves, Hachimura, Vando, Ayton (needs to be a consistent performer).

What’s your prediction? Let us know below.