Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick. Matt Blewett-Imagn Images

JJ Redick hails Lakers win as maybe his 'favorite' of the season

By Sai Mohan | Last updated Dec 20, 2024 9:04 AM ET

The Lakers blew out the Raptors and Spurs by 20 and 18 points, respectively, in November, but none of those victories impressed head coach JJ Redick as much as Thursday's 113-100 win over the Kings.

Redick was particularly impressed by the Lakers' effort on defense, with third-year guard Max Christie continuing to thrive in his new role as the team's starting shooting guard.

"Our ability to get multiple stops in a row, on a poor shooting night, was huge, particularly on the road," Redick told reporters after the win.

To Redick's point, the Lakers shot 40.4% from the field and 36.4% from three and yet came away with the win riding on their defense. Furthermore, the Lakers committed only 10 turnovers and got the requisite stops down the stretch to close out the Kings.

It all amounted to perhaps Redick's "favorite" win of the season."

JJ Redick: “This might be my favorite win we’ve had all season.” Mentions the defensive effort and across the board contributions on a night the Lakers didn’t shoot it well.
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) December 20, 2024

In just his fifth start on Thursday, Christie did a tremendous job guarding De'Aaron Fox (7-of-17) and Malik Monk (7-of-15) at various junctures of the game, just a few nights after locking up Ja Morant and Desmond Bane in the Lakers' 116-110 win over the Grizzlies on Sunday.

Christie once again showed the ability to switch onto bigger players — like Keegan Murray — and held his own in every matchup. He fought over screens and did not allow Fox, Monk or DeMar DeRozan to find their rhythm. The 21-year-old from Michigan State put on a defensive clinic.

After shutting down Ja Morant and Desmond Bane last game, Max Christie came out and had another great defensive game for JJ Redick and the Lakers vs De'Aaron Fox and the Kings.

His speed and athleticism is one thing, but the attention to detail to his role of just going out… pic.twitter.com/DgG5BEVBSz
— LakeShow Highlights (@LSH_lakeshow) December 20, 2024

The Lakers had a 95-90 lead when Christie checked back into the game with 6:47 left in the fourth quarter. During the final stretch, he would collect a crucial offensive board and strip the ball from Fox at the 1:29 mark. The two plays all but sealed the Lakers' win.

While Christie finished with only eight points, he was a plus-17 on the floor and did just about enough to retain his place in the starting unit.

The Lakers (15-12) are on a bit of a roll, having won three of their last four games. They will next face the Kings in a rematch on Saturday.

Sai Mohan

A veteran sportswriter based in Portugal, Sai covers the NBA for Yardbarker and a few local news outlets. He had the honor of covering sporting events across four different continents as a newspaper reporter. Some of his all-time favorite athletes include Mike Tyson, Larry Bird, Luís Figo, Ayrton Senna and Steffi Graf.

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