Heading into the Los Angeles Lakers‘ opening-round playoff series against the Rockets, it would have been perfectly acceptable to accept the reality it appeared fate had laid out for L.A. After an incredible post-All-Star break run for the Lakers, it appeared that bad luck had taken out the team. First Luka Doncic went down with a hamstring injury in late March. But, in the same game, No. 2 scorer Austin Reaves also went down, with an oblique injury.
Both are likely to miss the playoff series against Houston, and no team really stands a chance in a playoff matchup when missing its top two scorers.
Yet, through two games, the Lakers are ahead, 2-0, on the Rockets, and appear to have throttled Houston’s offense to a standstill. The Rockets were missing star Kevin Durant in Game 1, and scored just 97 points in that game. But with Durant back for Game 2 and with the Rockets ready to re-assert themselves, Houston instead slid back, scoring just 94 points.
Lakers Getting Better Showing From JJ Redick
The level of frustration on the part of the Rockets was visible in Game 2 vs. the Lakers. And while the play of Luke Kennard at point guard, Marcus Smart off the ball and LeBron James as the 41-year-old ringleader has been exceptional , around the NBA, this has been the JJ Redick coming out party.
Redick didn’t shower himself in glory with his coaching in last year’s playoff loss to the Timberwolves. That’s changed so far this series.
“He is coaching rings around Ime Udoka,” one NBA scout said of Redick. “It’s not even close, it’s embarrassing. The way the Lakers have bottled up (Kevin Durant) and exposed all the thing the Rockets do not do well–running set offense, guarding passing lanes, giving up perimeter shooters–it just really shows you how much of an advantage JJ has been in all this.”
‘Battle of Role Players’ in Playoff Series
The scout pointed out that the level of trust that Redick has put into Smart, and the way he is keeping him involved offensively to get the most out of Smart defensively. Smart repeatedly poked the ball from Durant in Game 2, and he has thrived in getting Durant to morph into a turnover machine–he averaged just 3.8 this season, but committed nine on Tuesday.
Redick has done the same with Kennard, except on the offensive end, turning him loose in whatever way Kennard can find to be comfortable.
“This series is a battle of role players,” the scout said. “And I don’t think that Ime has done a good enough job to give him the depth he needs in a series like this. But the Lakers role players have been great, starting with the two obvious ones: Smart and Kennard. Obviously, they have their assignments, but it’s also obvious that JJ has put so much faith into those two. And it is paying off.”
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