JJ Redick ruins the Lakers' attempt as loss to the Grizzlies ends their road trip 1-4

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Because they were undermanned and shorthanded, the Los Angeles Lakers couldn't afford many mistakes in their road trip finale in Memphis.

With Anthony Davis sidelined after suffering a bruised left heel in the previous game in Detroit, and Rui Hachimura sidelined after battling an illness that had spread through the locker room in recent weeks, they were missing Lakers two frontcourt starters and two of their top players four goal scorers. Notably, Davis' absence left the Lakers with just two traditional big men, Jaxson Hayes and two-way center Christian Koloko, with Koloko playing his first game in nearly 19 months after being sidelined with blood clots.

Meanwhile, the Grizzlies, one of the league's tallest and fastest teams, start three players at least 6 feet tall and play two other tall players at least 6 feet tall off the bench. The size disadvantage was too great for the Lakers that they were ultimately knocked off the field in a 131-114 loss. The loss capped a disastrous 4-1 draw for the Lakers, dropping them to 4-4 overall and sapping the good spirits and positivity of their 3-0 start under new coach JJ Redick.

When Redick was asked after the game if he was happy with his team's performance given how shorthanded they were, he didn't hide his disappointment in his group.

“None of us are,” Redick said.

Energy, effort and focus were the problems on the road trip, which often translated into terrible transition defense, subpar defensive rebounding and untimely defensive breakdowns.

The Lakers gave up more than 130 points twice on the trip. Three of their four losses were by double digits. They have slipped to 28th in defensive rating, allowing 118.8 points per 100 possessions and undermining their eighth-ranked offense.

“At the end of the day, especially when you lose bodies, you have to compete,” LeBron James said. “You have to compete even harder. You have to be out there and give it everything you can on both ends. I think there were times when we did that, but most of the time I don’t think we were able to maintain the energy and the effort.”

Redick highlighted James on Wednesday, who scored a season-high 39 points (including six 3s) and performed admirably against Jaren Jackson Jr. But he also found it absurd that a 39-year-old played harder than his much younger teammates.

“I think LeBron was fantastic tonight,” Redick said. “Almost 40 years old and the toughest player on our team. It says a lot about him.”

It also said a lot about the rest of the group. While there were several players to point to, D'Angelo Russell drew the ire of Redick after Russell was blocked on a retreating 3-pointer by Jay Huff in a sequence and then failed to execute the proper defensive rotation Challenging Huff seconds later.

During the ensuing timeout, Redick encountered Russell, who left to regroup with his coaching staff. Redick pulled Russell and didn't play him the rest of the game (the final 17:54). Russell finished the season with 21:33 playing time, the fewest minutes of any starter and his lowest total of the season.

Redick then openly shared why he left his starting guard spot.

“Just a level of competition,” Redick said. “Attention to detail. We talked to him about some things for a few weeks. And sometimes he was really good at it. And sometimes it's just a matter of returning to certain habits. But it wasn't a punishment. We just felt like we had a chance to win that game, that was the route we wanted to take. Gabe (Vincent) was fantastic in the first half, especially defensively. And I just wanted to see what that looked like.”

Redick has beaten Russell in three previous games with Vincent, reflecting his confidence in Vincent's defense and stability despite his poor shooting early in the season (and really only in his limited tenure as a Laker).

As the team returns to Los Angeles, Redick said his biggest lesson from the trip is that the Lakers need a certain level of focus and intensity from the group to be competitive. Once they had that, they looked like the surprise team they were at the start of the season. If not, they were dominated.

“It comes back to choices,” Redick said. “I think something we discussed as a group. And you have a choice every night about how you play, and it has nothing to do with shot execution. There has to be a group of people, seven, eight people, who make this decision. And we're a really good basketball team. (If) we have a handful, us two or three, we're not going to be a good basketball team that night. So that’s just the reality.”

According to Redick, Davis is expected to return Friday against Philadelphia. The game marks the start of a much-needed home stretch for the Lakers. Including the preseason, they have played 11 of their first 14 games outside of Los Angeles. They will play six of their next eight games at home.

To make up the ground they lost in the standings and climb back above .500, the Lakers will have to play with a level of urgency that has been difficult for the group to maintain since last season. Redick has already made a major rotation change by inserting Cam Reddish into the lineup — and it worked, as Reddish led the bench with 15 points and six rebounds against the Grizzlies — and reducing Max Christie's minutes. If the team continues to flounder, Redick may make even bigger changes.

The status quo doesn't work. In the final question of his postgame press conference, Redick was asked how he addressed his concerns with his group.

“I just did that,” Redick said, dropping the microphone on the table for the second time on the trip.

As he walked away from the podium, he shouted something to the group of reporters.

“First thing I told them,” Redick said.

(Photo of Gabe Vincent and Scotty Pippen Jr. from Memphis: Justin Ford / Getty Images)