Lakers coach JJ Redick has provided a crucial update on stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis playing back-to-back games this season. With LA about to have their first back-to-back of the year this weekend on Friday against the Suns and Saturday against the Kings, Redick said LeBron and Davis’ status for the second game won’t be premeditated.
The Lakers are expected to assess their situation on the morning of those back-end games and take a call on their status.
LeBron and Davis are coming off a grueling basketball calendar where both plays played a massive amount of games starting from the 2023 NBA Playoffs. They played 16 playoff games, followed by LeBron playing 75 and Davis playing 80 regular season and postseason games combined in 2023-24.
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The duo also represented the USA at the Paris Olympics, participating in 11 more games, including the exhibition and the main event.
The Lakers will hope LeBron James and Anthony Davis can stay healthy as it remains key to their success of getting back at the Western Conference summit. LA is already dealing with injury-prone role players like Jarred Vanderbilt and Christian Wood, so it will be their priority to ensure that LeBron and AD’s workloads are managed.
JJ Redick’s Lakers are off to a flyer, with Anthony Davis seemingly taking over the mantle from LeBron James
The Lakers began the JJ Redick era with a huge win over reigning Western Conference Finalists, the Timberwolves. Anthony Davis was at the center of it all, tallying 36 points, 16 rebounds, four assists one block and three steals. Redick’s plan to make Davis a hub on both ends is seemingly in effect.
His plan to reduce LeBron James’ regular season workload was also visible as the four-time MVP tallied 16 points, five rebounds, four assists and two blocks in the 110-103 win on a relatively lower usage rate. The Lakers often turned to Davis to get out of a crunch, allowing him to play more iso when the offense turned cold.
The indication was clear that the long-awaited passing of the torch is in motion for the Lakers as they make Anthony Davis the focal point of their schemes. JJ Redick is also ensuring that LA majorly runs everything through the star center, as it has proven to be the recipe for success over the past few years, especially since the 2023 Western Conference finals run.