Lakers relish back to back blowouts, still in search of team identity ...Middle East

LOS ANGELES — Call Chicken Little.

The sky is falling, for the nineteenth time. At least, according to Lakers Coach JJ Redick, that’s been the case.

“The world is falling for us 19 times,” Redick said after Sunday’s victory over the Sacramento Kings. “It’s just part of the nature of this cycle and our guys. … Like I talked about it pregame, our guys bounced back and responded well throughout the season.”

Across the last week, the Lakers (36-24) have faced a three-game skid before blowing out the Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings in a road-to-home back-to-back. Long faces across the Lakers roster said it all after the team’s loss to Phoenix Suns on Thursday – the third in a string of disappointing defeats, which included missed 3-pointers at the buzzer, squandered leads and defensive communication lapses.

And the wide smiles, after defeating Golden State and Sacramento by a combined 52 points, lifting the Lakers back to 1 1/2 games from third place in the Western Conference, spoke seemingly louder than words.

“Obviously it was two great wins,” Luka Doncic said. “But we just got to go game by game. Obviously there’s a lot of noise outside, but like (Sunday night), we can’t pay attention to that. We got to go game by game.”

Forward Rui Hachimura, who missed the previous two games with an illness before playing 22 minutes against the Kings on Sunday, said that the Lakers are still in search of cementing their team identity. Redick’s lineups have become ever-evolving, only recently cementing into a five-man starting lineup with Austin Reaves, LeBron James, Luka Doncic, Marcus Smart and Deandre Ayton.

So far, the group has played to a 3-3 record across six games.

“When we play good, like really good, we look like a championship team,” Hachimura said of the Lakers, which are 23-2 when leading at halftime, the best mark in the NBA. “But when we, when we not, like we have a lot of time that we not, then we look like we’re just literally out of a playoff team.”

Reaves has missed 26 games. James has missed 18 games. Doncic has missed 12 games. In many ways, the Lakers are still discovering how to play when they’ve got a full roster of options and rotations available.

“(James, Reaves and Doncic) all have gravity and they all have the ability to score with the ball and make decisions with the ball,” Redick said. “We’ll just continue to look for ways to have them work together.”

Recently, lineups with the Lakers star trio, who have now played in 16 games together, has turned into a plus (0.5 in the positive). Redick has explored playing Doncic and Reaves (the team’s best guard-forward combo, per plus-minus) in lineups without James in the middle stages of games, shifting James back onto the floor while Doncic and Reaves rest on the bench.

Across the Lakers’ previous three games – in lineups that have stayed on the floor for five-or-more minutes in at least two of the games – Doncic and Reaves average a 10 in the plus-minus when suited up alongside Luke Kennard, Jake LaRavia and Jaxson Hayes, while James averages a 3.25 in plus-minus when rotating with Kennard, LaRavia, Marcus Smart and one of backup big men, Hayes or Maxi Kleber.

When asked about finding team identity before Sunday’s game, Redick said that whoever is on the floor, the Lakers’ success will come down to effort and execution.

“That’s kind of been the thing all season to really establish that identity, but I’m confident we will,” Redick said.

The Lakers will try to make it three victories in a row on Tuesday against the New Orleans Pelicans (19-43), who like the Kings, are safely out of the playoff hunt.

Related Articles

Hence then, the article about lakers relish back to back blowouts still in search of team identity was published today ( Tuesday 03/03/2026 - 12:08 AM ) and is available on Los Angeles Daily News ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.

Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Lakers relish back to back blowouts, still in search of team identity )

Also on site :

• Netanyahu’s office releases meeting footage, debunking assassination rumors
• Todd Meadows Cause of Death: What We Know About the 'Deadliest Catch' Star's Death so Far
• MyFitnessPal has acquired Cal AI, the viral calorie app built by teens