Lou Williams says J.J. Redick might’ve made mistake that could ‘linger’

Former NBA guard Lou Williams had some interesting thoughts on Los Angeles Lakers head coach J.J. Redick’s reaction to the team’s loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday.

Redick was clearly not happy with his team after it lost by double digits to an Atlanta team that was down several important players due to injury.

Williams believes that depending upon the personalities on the Lakers, Redick’s actions could linger.

“You gotta know the personality of your team, right?” Williams began. “Again, you off to a 7-3 start, and then your coach goes into the postgame and acts like y’all are 0-10. It’s kinda like, ‘Damn, Coach, we can’t have a bad night? You can’t have a bad night? We can’t have a bad night? What’s up with you, bro?’”

Williams continued.

“Depending on the personalities of that team, this can linger,” he said. “Like if Luka [Doncic] decided that he wanted to be offended by that, this could be a lingering problem that you don’t necessarily have.

“And so — but he has every right to react how he reacts as the head coach of that basketball team, but if you’re off to the start that you’re having, I felt like his message could’ve been a little better.”

It’s understandable that Redick was frustrated with the team’s loss, and Williams is only speculating that his reaction could impact the team’s locker room.

The Lakers are off to a strong start this season, winning seven of their first 10 games even though star forward LeBron James has yet to play in a game while Doncic and fellow star guard Austin Reaves have both missed time. Hopefully, James will be able to hit the ground running whenever he returns from sciatica.

Meanwhile, Doncic has played at an MVP level so far this season, averaging 37.0 points, 10.0 rebounds an 9.5 assists per game while shooting 49.0 percent from the field and 31.9 percent from 3-point range.

Los Angeles is in the mix for a top spot in the Western Conference, and it would love to finish in the top three in the standings like it did in the 2024-25 season.

The Lakers will look to rebound from their loss to the Hawks on Monday night when they take on the Charlotte Hornets. Charlotte is just 3-6 this season and will be without star guard LaMelo Ball in the looming matchup.

The clash with the Hornets will mark the second game of a five-game road trip for the Purple and Gold.