'We Don't Care Enough,' JJ Redick Slams Lakers' Effort After Christmas Loss to Rockets

In the midst of their first real test of adversity this season, Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick sounded off on the way his team is playing after a 119-96 loss to the Houston Rockets on Christmas Day.

Speaking to reporters following the loss, Redick emphatically criticized his team by saying "we don't care enough" about doing the things necessary to win games.

The Lakers have lost three straight games for the first time all season. They've been outscored by an average of 20.7 points during this skid and have been held under 100 points in two of these three games.

By comparison, the Lakers scored fewer than 100 points once in their first 26 games. They are 4-6 in their last 10 games after a strong 15-4 start to the season.

Redick said after the game that he is going to make things "uncomfortable" for the Lakers when they reconvene to practice on Saturday in an effort to improve their effort level going forward because they "were a terrible basketball team" against the Rockets.

Rockets-Lakers Full Highlights

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"Saturday's practice—I told the guys—it's going to be uncomfortable," Redick said. "The meeting is going to be uncomfortable. I'm not doing another 53 games like this."

The Lakers did play shorthanded in the second half when Austin Reaves was ruled out with a calf injury, but they weren't faring well before he was taken out. Houston put up 37 points in the first quarter and led by 10 at the break.

Expectations for the Lakers shifted due to their hot start, but the roster is deeply flawed and was likely to have issues on defense. That has borne out as this season has progressed, as they've slipped to 25th overall in defensive rating.

It was assumed they were going to make up for it by having an elite offense, but that has not been the case. They are very good on that end of the court, ranking seventh in rating, but they would need to be close to perfect in that area to be regarded as any sort of contender in the Western Conference.

The Lakers have the players to be an elite offense with Luka Dončić, LeBron James and Reaves at the center of things, though James is starting to look closer to his age than he ever has before.

If that trio isn't on the court and playing at their absolute peak, the Lakers will struggle to win games. They are finding that out the hard way right now. They have two days off before returning to action on Sunday against the Sacramento Kings.