New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward/guard Luka Doncic (77) talks to Head Coach JJ Redick against the New Orleans Pelicans during the second half at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images
Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images
The Los Angeles Lakers have completely overhauled their roster around Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves this offseason, but an anonymous team executive isn’t really convinced that JJ Redick has enough defensive talent to work with.
Speaking to Keith Smith, the executive praised the Lakers’ offensive talent before joking that simply finishing among the NBA’s top-20 defenses could warrant Coach of the Year consideration for JJ Redick.
“Well, there’s certainly a lot of offense… Defensively… well, they’ll score a lot of points! If JJ can get this group in the top-20 on defense, give him Coach of the Year.”
This is an incredibly low bar for a team that is hoping to contend in the Western Conference.
The Lakers have very few problems scoring-wise. Doncic and Reaves give them two elite creators, Quentin Grimes provides shooting and two-way ability, and Sandro Mamukelashvili and Collin Sexton give them additional scoring off the bench. Walker Kessler could also thrive as a screen-setter and a lob threat next to Luka.
But the major concern is everything that will happen on the other end.
Kessler is the Lakers’ biggest offseason acquisition and immediately gives them something they desperately needed: a legitimate defensive anchor and shot blocker. He averaged 1.8 blocks in just five appearances last season before undergoing surgery to repair a torn labrum.
But one elite rim protector is not going to solve everything.
Luka has never been known to be even an average defender, and Reaves also has severe limitations on that end as well. Mamukelashvili could potentially start at power forward, but defense is considered one of his weaker areas of the game.
That could force Redick to turn to players such as Matisse Thybulle and Ziaire Williams when the Lakers need more defensive pressure. Their defensive concerns are one of the major reasons that ESPN has picked them to be the most disappointing team in the 2026-27 season.
Lakers insider Jovan Buha has previously identified the biggest area of concern for the Lakers, and that is health.
“My biggest worry is health.Looking at Luka, Austin, and Walker Kessler, that has not been the most durable trio over the past two or three years. So that would be my biggest concern. Just can the Lakers get ideally 70-ish games out of each of those three guys? 65-plus games out of each of those three guys. “If so, I think they should be in the mix for home-court, 50-plus wins,” Buha added. “So, health is the biggest thing.”
Another concern Buha pointed out is that the Lakers face an interesting challenge in maximizing this roster while giving young players like Adou Theiro, Bronny James, and Cameron Carr a chance. And making sure they remain locked in a win-now mode and making sure that Luka signs his extension next summer.
But still, suggesting that merely reaching 20th would be a coaching miracle is just going too far.
The Lakers actually finished 20th in defensive rating (115.5) last season despite having plenty of problems on that end. They did rank 11th in the league in points allowed per game at 114.6. More importantly, they demonstrated that Redick can squeeze considerably more out of a group for extended stretches.
After the All-Star break, the Lakers were actually ranked eighth in defensive efficiency. That matters because it proves Redick has already coached this Lakers roster into being a top-10 defense over a significant portion of a season.
Maintaining that level across 82 games is obviously a different challenge, especially with so many new players learning to work together. But the Lakers should not be satisfied with ending the season as the 20th-ranked defense.
If Luka and Reaves can lead an elite offense, the Lakers don’t necessarily need a top-five defense to become dangerous. A league-average unit could be enough to produce an excellent regular season.
The bigger question is whether that formula survives in the playoffs when opponents relentlessly target defensive weaknesses.
Redick has his work cut out here, but Kessler gives them a solid foundation. If he can build even an average or an above-average defense around that foundation, and the Lakers’ offense performs as expected, they could be significantly better than the anonymous executive’s joke suggests.