After an offseason filled with high hopes and headline-grabbing acquisitions, the Los Angeles Lakers entered the 2025-26 NBA preseason with renewed expectations.
The front office had gone all-in, acquiring high-profile talent like Deandre Ayton, Marcus Smart, and Jake LaRavia, signaling a commitment to serious contention.
But despite the hype, the Lakers were brought back down to earth on October 3 with a lopsided 103-81 loss to the Phoenix Suns.
The defeat wasn’t just a preseason blemish-it was a stark wake-up call. After the game, second-year head coach JJ Redick didn’t shy away from reality, giving a brutally honest assessment of where his team stands.
Redick admits Suns are ahead of Lakers in preseason preparation
In his postgame comments, Redick made it clear that while he didn’t expect perfection, the team’s performance revealed a glaring gap between the Lakers and more cohesive squads like the Suns.
“I’m not expecting perfection in a preseason game, but there’s room for growth in some areas,” Redick told reporters.
“The reality, and this is not an excuse, this is quite literally reality, they (Suns) had 19 guys in the gym all of September, they did their installs similar to how we did last year in September.”
“They were able to get a lot of their installs in, and they had seven practices. They’re ahead of us from that perspective. They have more stuff in,” he added.
This kind of transparency from Redick surprised some fans, especially after his recent statements about the team’s conditioning and preparation heading into the season.
“We’ve asked all our guys to be in championship shape. And not starting on Tuesday. And so, the commitment level across the board from our team has been very high this summer. We’ve had organized workouts,” he had said earlier in the week.
But that “championship shape” was nowhere to be found against a Phoenix squad that looked far more connected and disciplined.
Devin Booker paced the Suns with 24 points and seven assists, while Grayson Allen and Dillon Brooks added 13 and 10 points, respectively. As a team, Phoenix racked up 29 assists on 38 made field goals, putting on a clinic in ball movement and spacing.
The Lakers, on the other hand, looked disjointed. They shot just 31.1% from the field and recorded a meager 10 assists.
On both ends of the floor, they lacked rhythm and cohesion. For a team with championship aspirations, the disparity in energy and execution was difficult to ignore.
Still, it’s worth noting that preseason is just the beginning, and Redick‘s message may serve as an early rallying point. The loss highlights the challenges of integrating new pieces and building chemistry on the fly.
The Lakers won’t have long to stew over the defeat. Their next test comes on October 5, when they face off against the Golden State Warriors.
That matchup will offer another chance to evaluate how quickly this new-look roster can come together, and whether Redick‘s honest critique can spark the turnaround this team needs.
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