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Before the Los Angeles Lakers’ road tilt in Atlanta, JJ Redick told reporters he likes where the defense sits through nine games, even with LeBron James sidelined, and circled two fixes for this trip. Cleaner transition defense and answers for “unorthodox” pick-and-rolls. He also shouted out DeAndre Ayton’s rim protection metrics as a closest defender trending near the top of the league, per an exchange relayed by The Athletic’s Law Murray on X, formerly Twitter. Asked JJ Redick about where he sees his defense through 9 games and areas of improvement for this road trip He mentioned that tonight is a great time to work on transition defense and to prepare to defend unorthodox pick-and-rolls. But is satisfied with defense, esp. without LBJ pic.twitter.com/OsULBw0TM3 — Law Murray ⛲️ (@LawMurrayTheNU) November 9, 2025 On paper, there’s progress; the latest data point was a 122–102 loss to the Atlanta Hawks, where execution wobbled in the middle quarters. Los Angeles turned it over 20 times and gave up 51.1% shooting, numbers that make any scheme look ordinary. Luka Doncic led the Lakers with 22 points and 11 assists, while Atlanta’s balance, Mouhamed Gueye’s 21, and Zaccharie Risacher’s shot-making kept pressure on all night. Redick’s larger point still lands. Without James, the Lakers have tried to win on connectivity. One effort on the ball, bell-ringing closeouts, and a big in stance at the rim. The misses show up when the floor tilts in transition or when creative screening angles scramble matchups. That’s why Redick highlighted those “unorthodox” pick-and-rolls, empty-side actions, pocket passes that force the low man to tag and recover. Clean up those rotations, and the profile tightens. James’ absence looms; he did not travel on the current five-game trip as he ramps toward five-on-five work. The earliest realistic return date circled has been mid-November. Until then, Los Angeles needs Ayton’s contests to hold, Austin Reaves to navigate screens without fouling, and role players to sprint to corners so the defense isn’t defending live-ball turnovers.
