JJ Redick Fixed the Lakers’ Biggest Offensive Problem

The Los Angeles Lakers have never lacked star power, but their best version has always depended on something simpler than talent: how consistently their stars can make the game easy for everyone else. In recent weeks, that “easy” has shown up more often—and it’s not an accident.

The Lakers’ offense has taken a noticeable step forward when Luka Dončić isn’t asked to play one-note basketball. Not just “Luka ISO, one screen, everyone watches,” but a more layered approach built on motion, handoffs, re-screens, and quick reads that force defenses to process multiple threats at once. When Luka moves—even a little—spacing improves, touches spread, and role players suddenly look like they’re playing with purpose instead of waiting for a kickout that may or may not come.

That shift is central to the J.J. Redick era’s early identity: create actions that keep Luka engaged off the ball, keep the defense in rotation, and turn double teams into automatic advantages rather than difficult rescues. It’s also a big reason why Deandre Ayton has been feasting at the rim, and why LeBron James continues to look like the league’s most consistent “problem solver” despite being in his 40s.

A breakdown of one film sequence against New Orleans shows it clearly: the Lakers ran a simple early-game action where four of the five players touched the ball, and the possession ended with a LeBron dunk. That’s not just pretty offense. It’s functional offense—offense that makes it easier to defend on the other end because everyone feels involved, connected, and locked in.

Here’s what the tape reveals about the Lakers’ best offensive habits right now, why the Pelicans’ blitz strategy played into Los Angeles’ hands, and why LeBron’s ability to read the “back line” of a defense still creates points that look effortless but are anything but.

The Big Difference: Luka Movement vs. Luka Ball-Watching Offense

There’s a version of the Lakers where Luka dominates the ball, walks it up, hunts a matchup, calls for a single screen, and then tries to solve a set defense while four teammates stand still.

That version can still score because Luka is Luka. But it often produces:

fewer paint touches for bigs
fewer rhythm shots for shooters
fewer cuts because defenders can load up early
more “my turn/your turn” possessions
more energy wasted late in the clock

The better version—the one Redick is clearly chasing—uses Luka as a moving gravity source. Even minimal off-ball movement changes the geometry. A quick give-and-go, a handoff into a re-screen, a simple “get it back and come off a double” action forces defenders to communicate and rotate. It also prevents help defenders from sitting in the gaps early.

That’s why the Lakers are better when Luka moves “even just a little.” It isn’t about running him like a marathoner. It’s about getting him into situations where the defense has to decide quickly:

Do we trap him off this action like we’ve been doing?
If we trap, who tags the roller?
If we rotate, who is responsible for the weak-side cutter?
If we switch, where is the mismatch and can we help?

When you make defenses answer those questions in two seconds instead of seven, the floor opens.

The Pelicans’ Game Plan: Blitz Luka Off Screens — and Why That’s “Correct” (But Risky)

New Orleans’ approach was straightforward: blitz Luka on ball screens and handoff actions. It’s a common strategy against high-level creators because the goal is to get the ball out of their hands early and force other players to make decisions.

In theory, it’s the “best way” to guard Luka. In practice, it becomes dangerous when:

the screener can finish at the rim
the Lakers’ spacing is functional
cutters are active on the weak side
Luka is willing to pass early and precisely

Blitzing works best when the offense is slow to react, or when the short roll isn’t a real threat. But if the big can catch and finish—and if LeBron is cutting behind ball-watching help defenders—the blitz becomes a tool that creates layups.

That is exactly what the film sequence showed: Luka draws two defenders, hits the release valve, and the defense’s rotation triggers the backdoor cut. Suddenly, the best “anti-Luka” strategy turns into a dunk for someone else.

First Possession Tone-Setter: Four Touches, One Dunk, Everybody Engaged

One early action captured what the Lakers want to be.

The Lakers ran a simple set: an entry into a handoff, Luka gives it up, gets it back, and comes off the action into a situation where New Orleans commits two defenders to him. Luka finds Ayton. The moment Ayton catches it, the defense has to rotate—Zion Williamson steps over to help. And that’s when LeBron reads it and cuts hard backdoor.

Result: dunk.

Why it matters: this wasn’t Luka dribbling for 12 seconds. It was an early, connected possession where multiple players touched the ball and the defense was forced to move. That changes the emotional temperature of a game. Players run back on defense harder when they feel included. Bigs sprint when they know they’ll get rewarded. Cutters cut when they believe the pass will arrive.

It’s a small detail that becomes a big detail in playoff basketball.

Redick’s Most Important “Luka Fix”: Off-Ball Screens and Unfamiliar Looks for Defenses

The tape highlighted something that has quietly become one of the most meaningful adjustments in the Lakers’ offense: Luka coming off off-ball screens and down screens.

Defenses are used to Luka as the initiator. They prepare to trap him on ball screens. They load their help early. They position their bigs to contain and their guards to rear-view contest.

But when Luka is in the corner and suddenly comes flying off a down screen into a catch—now what?

Do you trap him immediately like you would on a pick-and-roll?
If you trap, are you giving up a lob behind the play?
If you don’t trap, are you letting him turn the corner into the lane?
If you overhelp, who is tagging Ayton?
If you rotate, who is watching LeBron cutting behind you?

The defense hesitates, and Luka doesn’t need much hesitation. The ball comes out, and the Lakers generate a clean look at the rim.

This is the strategic value of movement: you force “uncertainty possessions,” where the defense isn’t sure which rulebook it’s using.

Ayton’s Role: Why Luka Gravity Is Turning Him Into a High-Percentage Weapon

One of the clearest outcomes of this system is how easy Ayton’s scoring becomes.

If Luka is consistently drawing traps and secondary attention, the big has two jobs:

If he can do that, he becomes the natural beneficiary of the defense’s fear of Luka. This is how elite playmaking inflates big-man efficiency. When the defense commits two to the ball, the big is often catching on the move with the paint already compromised.

That’s why Ayton’s field goal percentage climbs in systems like this: he’s not being asked to create against set defenders. He’s being asked to finish advantages. Dunks, layups, quick seals, and lobs become his nightly diet.

And it’s not just Luka. LeBron’s presence amplifies it too—because LeBron is constantly reading where the help is coming from and how to punish it.

“Run It Again”: The Hammer Action Sequence That Shows Real Offensive Maturity

A hallmark of good offenses is the willingness to repeat a concept until the defense proves it can stop it. The Lakers did that.

They ran a set built on “hammer” principles—using a down screen and a ball screen to create a defined read. New Orleans blitzed Luka, as expected. The Lakers made the simple play: Luka hits the roller (or the big in space), and the defense is too small or too late to prevent the finish.

Then the Lakers ran it again.

This time the Pelicans adjusted. The defender who previously stayed low came up earlier to tag the roller. Zion rotated to take away the roll lane. On paper, that’s the right counter: remove the easy lob and force a skip pass or a reset.

But the Lakers punished it anyway—because the “advantage” moved.

When Zion stepped up to take the roller, LeBron cut backdoor into the empty space. Luka recognized the rotation and delivered the pass that turned the defensive adjustment into another dunk.

That’s elite offense: not just reading the first coverage, but reading the adjustment to your counter and punishing the next layer.

The Signature Luka Moment: Jump-Pass Vision and the “Somebody Is Open” Certainty

There was a possession where the Pelicans blitzed hard and the floor looked covered. For most players, that’s a reset. For Luka, it’s a math problem.

Two defenders on the ball means one defender is missing somewhere else. Luka dragged the trap toward the sideline, elevated to improve his sightline, and threw a perfectly weighted pass over the top to Ayton for a lob finish.

Those are the plays that make “best passer in the league” conversations feel less like debate and more like acknowledgment. It’s not just that Luka can see the pass—it’s that he can deliver it with touch and angle while moving and under pressure.

And it speaks to why Redick wants Luka in motion: the earlier Luka touches the ball on the move, the earlier the defense has to commit, and the earlier those “math passes” appear.

LeBron’s Hidden Superpower: Reading the Help Defense Before It Happens

If Luka is the gravity, LeBron is the interpreter.

One section of the film breakdown emphasized a classic LeBron trait: he is always reading the help defense and the back line, often one step ahead of the action. In transition, he identifies where the two-on-one will form on the weak side. In half-court, he watches which defender is responsible for tagging the roll or showing help at the nail.

Then he exploits it.

Sometimes it’s a backdoor cut the moment the help turns its head. Sometimes it’s a pass that “looks off” the defender to open a lane for a cutter. Sometimes it’s anticipating the opponent’s pet play—ball screen into flare—and jumping the passing lane for a dunk the other way.

That’s what basketball IQ looks like at an elite level: you aren’t reacting to what the defense did. You’re reacting to what the defense has to do next.

It’s also why playing with LeBron is easier than it looks from the outside. He’s constantly manufacturing layups for bigs and rhythm looks for teammates by making the correct read earlier than everyone else.

Why This Offense Works: Touches Create Defense

A quiet point buried in the film is arguably the biggest cultural difference between good offenses and great ones: involvement creates effort.

When four players touch the ball on a possession, the fifth player is more likely to sprint back. When a big gets an early dunk, he sets harder screens. When cutters are rewarded, they keep cutting. When shooters feel seen, they keep moving without the ball.

This is one reason Redick’s emphasis on movement matters beyond X’s and O’s. The Lakers can’t afford defensive lapses if they want to contend. Their defense has been inconsistent at times. One way to stabilize defense is to make the offense feel connected, because connected offense often leads to connected transition defense and better communication.

It’s not magic. It’s psychology.

The Remaining Question: Can the Lakers Keep This Identity When Games Tighten?

Regular-season offense can look beautiful. The playoffs strip away comfort.

The real test will be whether the Lakers keep Luka moving when possessions get tense, when defenses switch more, when scouting is deeper, and when the natural temptation is to fall back into “give Luka the ball and let him cook.”

The best version of this team likely requires balance:

Luka has to dominate certain moments—he’s too great not to
but the Lakers need enough movement and structure to prevent defenses from loading up early
and they need enough touches for role players to stay engaged and defend at playoff intensity

That’s the blueprint the tape is pointing toward.