With a commanding 111-97 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers, the Golden State Warriors set the tone in their preseason clash. The Lakers’ recent performance revealed significant areas in need of improvement, as the Warriors exposed weaknesses in their defensive intensity and ability to close out games. Despite strong moments from LeBron James and Anthony Davis, the Lakers struggled with consistency. Combined with their earlier preseason losses, this outing has raised concerns about their readiness for the regular season. Amidst these worries, JJ Redick praised an opposing player—and surprisingly, it wasn’t Warriors star Stephen Curry.

While assessing the team’s performance, Redick noted that while he was not entirely disappointed with the loss, there was one aspect of concern that he highlighted. “This was not gonna be a heavy rim game for us,” the rookie coach said, explaining why the Lakers struggled near the basket. Redick highlighted that a major reason for this was the Warriors’ solid defense and Daymond Green in particular. He praised Green’s game saying: “Draymond is a savvy player.”

Redick’s assessment was spot-on! Green played a crucial part in the Warriors’ win and his defensive prowess was visible whenever he stepped on the court. Green, who played for 26 minutes, scored 10 points, 10 rebounds, and 3 assists. The Warriors capitalized on Green’s presence, as he helped the team maintain control by reading the Lakers’ offense and disrupting plays.

Redick’s praise highlights just how crucial Draymond Green is to the Warriors’ overall system, emphasizing that his impact goes far beyond scoring. Green’s defensive prowess, leadership, and basketball IQ make him an irreplaceable presence on the court, stabilizing both ends of the game. As the preseason moves forward, there’s growing speculation about how the Warriors will shape their lineup for the regular season with Green’s return.

JJ Redick has a lot of hope, but Lakers deal with disappointing preseason

Highlighted by their disappointing performance and a record of 1-3 in the preseason, the Lakers have significant challenges to deal with. Even with a talented roster, the Lakers struggled to find their rhythm, raising concerns about their preparation for the regular season. The Purple and Gold have had a truly underwhelming preseason. They lost their first two games against the Timberwolves and the Suns, won the third in a close contest with the Milwaukee Bucks, and were comprehensively beaten by the Warriors.

The LeBron James-led team has two more games left in the preseason—the Suns and the Warriors. While the regular season is what really matters, for the Lakers, especially Redick, a solid preseason performance is vital given the criticism he has faced. However, Redick is not very concerned about their performances.

“Our execution, ball movement, passing, all of that stuff, and I’ll rewatch it, but I thought it was great in the first half, we just didn’t make shots. And that’s a human nature, it’s a tendency of groups, of players, I’ve lived it, a lot of these things I’ve lived, so I have some experience in some perspective on it,” he noted.

“We’re ready. Just continue to build trust with what we’re doing.”

While Redick might have an optimistic outlook for the future, many analysts don’t share this view. Since the Lakers’ preseason campaign started there have been numerous criticisms aimed at the front office, Redick, LeBron, and even his son Bronny. Analysts even questioned if Bronny was worth the trade given that the rookie is yet to fire. Following the Warriors game, LeBron faced some criticism. 5x NBA champ Derek Fisher said that LeBron “was chilling” and “didn’t try to exert himself in the way of like taking control at any point of the game.” Even Lakers’ announcer Bill McDonald said LeBron stood like a “traffic cone” when Stephen Curry dribbled past him to score.

So, while Redick expresses confidence, there is genuine concern about how the Lakers will perform in the regular season. Well, they still have two more preseason games to go.