The Lakers offense is also a work in progress

Scored 89 points in a loss to the Celtics inevitably made an impression in Los Angeles. “We were just terrible”, could only observe JJ Redick, who is facing his troops’ second-lowest offense of the season, ahead of the 88 points scored against the Clippers on December 20, 2025.

However, with Luka Doncic, LeBron James and Austin Reaves on the floor, the Lakers should not suffer a point. And that’s generally because they have the 11th-best offense on the season, but injuries to each of them have limited the chances of seeing this trio.

“It is clear that we are not there yet. We are working on it. The potential is great when we play together,” analyze Slovenian. “We’re not there,” insists LeBron James. “We have games for that, but now it’s a sprint. We have to find it. It’s not just me or Luka and Austin. It’s clear that we have the ball in our hands most of the time, but we have to take care to keep the others in rhythm. Five-man attack.”

Attack for a perfect, but above all fragile defense

The Lakers’ offensive problems often stem from a lack of movement and collective play. Talent is not enough over time and as soon as the assists decrease, the wins go at the same pace.

“You have to recognize the matchups that require something else. There are matches where we can use matches with the qualities of Luke and LeBron and that’s how we win, then other nights where we have to be better collectively, myself included.” Austin Reeves announces. “When we do that, things open up more for everyone than when we do it one-on-one. That’s what we want.”

Working on this “big three” to get the best out of it will obviously be a good thing for Los Angeles, but the main problem for the “king” and his gang is the defense. The Lakers have the 24th best defense in the league (so the 7th worst…), and with an offense that is only slightly better than average, it is not enough to advance.

The Pistons have the 10th ranked offense in the league, just ahead of the Californians, but they can rely on their defense to make the difference. Other examples: The Suns or Raptors, with similar records, have less efficient offense but better defense. So when the offense fails to reach the 110 point mark (to round up and below their average), they still manage to win a few games. This is not the case in Los Angeles, which always has to save furniture with its attack. Lakers record when held to 109 points or less? Only 2 wins for 16 losses…