JJ Redick calls out D’Angelo Russell for not competing
Displeased with D’Angelo Russell’s performance, JJ Redick pulled him from the game midway through the third quarter, even though the Lakers were struggling on the road against the Grizzlies.
If the NBA season is a marathon, Lakers coach JJ Redick might reconsider his commitment to running.
He looked displeased and frustrated after the Lakers lost in a blowout 131-114 to the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday and ended his postgame presser with a mic drop of disgust.
JJ Redick doesn’t seem to be in a good mood after that performance by the Lakers. pic.twitter.com/pNg6h7S49r
— Edwin Garcia (@ECreates88) November 7, 2024
The team was short-handed, with Anthony Davis and Rui Hachimura unavailable, but Redick's frustration seemed to stem from his players' effort on the court, particularly that of D'Angelo Russell.
The Lakers guard had a rough performance, ending the game with 12 points, three assists and one rebound in 22 minutes of play. Russell only played six minutes in the third quarter and was benched the rest of the night. Postgame, Redick elaborated as to why.
"Just level of compete, attention to detail, some of the things we've have talked with him about for a couple of weeks," Redick said. "And at times, he's been really good with that stuff and other times, it's just reverting back to certain habits. It wasn't like a punishment. I just felt like for us to have a chance to win this game, that was the route we wanted to take."
There were only five games last season in which Russell played 22 minutes or less. Four of those games were during his benching, which the team and Russell didn't seem to like.
With Redick limiting Russell's play and also calling him out, I wonder how the rest of the players and Russell are taking it.
This could quickly become a very delicate situation.
So far, Redick has spoken fondly of D'Lo and even called him one of the vocal leaders on the team, but dynamics can change in the blink of an eye and with actions and statements like these, you never know how it will be received.
Even if Redick and Russell get along wonderfully, it's not a good sign that Russell's performance was so poor that he was benched.
Given that the Lakers reserves offer zero offensive help, going elsewhere for production seems like a damning declaration of one's play.
Russell has been through it all as a Laker, surviving trade rumors and tension with coaches before, so I'm certain he will give his best effort on the floor.
Still, given that he's in the last year of his deal, underperforming and the Lakers seem to have problems he can't solve, this is a situation to keep an eye on.
You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88.