The Los Angeles Lakers enter Monday night’s Game 4 at Crypto.com Arena trailing the Oklahoma City Thunder 3-0 in their Western Conference semifinal series, yet head coach JJ Redick insists the club has already squeezed everything it could out of this roster.
“Coaching is about two things: maximizing the group and making sure people enjoy coming to work,” Redick told reporters after Sunday’s practice. “The first part—we’ve done that this year.”
Los Angeles has dropped all three games to the defending champions by double-digit margins, putting the team one loss from elimination. Redick, however, credited both players and staff for keeping each contest competitive into the second half, noting, “There’s a reason they’re the world champions. There’s a reason they’re the deepest team in basketball.”
Injuries Tested Depth All Season
The Lakers finished the regular season 53-29 and captured the Pacific Division title despite a series of injuries that limited time together for Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves and LeBron James. Doncic has missed the entire postseason, yet the team still advanced past the first round.
“I wish we weren’t in this hole,” Redick said, “but we’re going to try to be better, win a game tomorrow and extend the series.”
The Thunder remain heavy favorites to repeat as NBA champions, but Redick stressed he has not given up on his squad. “We’ve put ourselves in position,” he said. “Now we have to finish one.”
Source: Lakers Nation
