Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick says the team will not reach its ceiling until it starts converting from the perimeter, despite a 12-4 record after Tuesday’s win over the Utah Jazz.
Speaking to reporters on Nov. 14 at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Redick noted that the Lakers are 26th in the NBA in three-point accuracy and 30th in made threes per game. Los Angeles beat Utah while shooting just 26 percent from deep, with Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves combining to go 4-for-20.
“We’re taking the shots,” Redick said on Spectrum SportsNet. “We started last year poorly from three, then turned it around after Dec. 23 against Detroit. Hopefully it doesn’t take that long this season, but we have to shoot the ball better for us to be as good as we want to be.”
Rui Hachimura is the club’s lone above-average outside threat so far, hitting 48.3 percent. Doncic, Reaves and LeBron James each finished last season near 38 percent, while Jake LaRavia shot better than 42 percent. Redick and James both emphasized that the team is creating open looks; the issue is converting them.
Redick credited Los Angeles’ defense and physicality for the victory over Utah, but reminded his players that they remain “one of the worst shooting teams in the league right now.”
Source: Lakers Nation
