LeBron James has once again stood up for head coach J.J. Redick. The Los Angeles Lakers superstar once again defended his coach’s decision not to make a single substitution in the second half of Game 4 against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
In Game 4, the Lakers had their backs against the wall, with another loss putting Minnesota up 3-1, and by the end of the game, the Lakers were visibly running out of steam. Not surprising, considering that coach J.J. Redick didn’t make a single substitution in the second half – a first in the NBA.
Redick had already announced this during the break, and according to LeBron, there was no controversy among the players in the locker room. “No one questioned that decision,” James clarified in his podcast Mind The Game with Steve Nash. “Of course, we had players in Gabe [Vincent] or [Jarred Vanderbilt] who could have given us some good minutes. (…) It was a gut decision because we had the momentum on our side. Ultimately, it was our mistake that we didn’t bring it home.”
James: Had a great opportunity
James also made it clear once again that he wasn’t tired, but would have accepted being substituted. “We had the opportunity to even the series against a great team and the coaches went all in.” It was only after the game that James felt tired, but not because of the playing time, but because it was a playoff game.
“I give my heart and soul for 48 minutes in games like this. We had a great chance and just didn’t take it.” Forty-eight hours later, it was finally over for L.A., as they lost at home to the Wolves and went down 1-4 in the series.