JJ Redick Rips Lakers After Bulls Loss: Worst Our Defense Has Looked… Maybe All Year

Despite star forward LeBron James' return from his groin injury, the Los Angeles Lakers suffered an embarrassing 146-115 loss to the Chicago Bulls on their home floor at Crypto.com Arena on Saturday night.

Following the loss, Lakers head coach JJ Redick didn't hold back his thoughts and criticized the team's performance on the defensive end of the floor.

"That was the worst our defense has looked, frankly, maybe all year," Redick said, per The Athletic's Jovan Buha. "But certainly in the last three months."

After taking a 65-61 lead into halftime, the Bulls outscored the Lakers 39-27 in the third quarter and 42-26 in the fourth. Chicago point guard Coby White had a game-high 36 points, while rookie forward Matas Buzelis added a career-high 31 points. Josh Giddey also had a strong performance with 15 points, 10 rebounds, 17 assists and eight steals.

The Lakers were coming off a grueling stretch of six games in eight days, and adding James back into the lineup following his two-week absence didn't do much to help matters. The 40-year-old had just 17 points in the loss.

Still, Redick placed the blame on Los Angeles' defensive effort, and rightfully so. Chicago scored a whopping 74 points in the paint compared to the Lakers' 42. The Bulls also outscored them 30-12 in transition and 27-14 in points off turnovers.

"Honestly, I thought when we came out, we looked flat," Redick added. "We felt flat. We moved flat. They just moved better than us all night. … And it just didn’t feel like our group overall really had like juice tonight, if that makes sense."

After falling to 43-27, the Lakers will try to get back on track when they face the Orlando Magic (33-38) on Monday night.