JJ Redick Admits Lakers Got “Exposed” After Blowout Loss to Suns

The Los Angeles Lakers opened Monday night looking sharp, energetic, and fully locked in. Luka Dončić was on fire early, exploding for 20 first-quarter points and setting the tone for what looked like another marquee performance.

But once the second quarter hit, everything fell apart.

The Lakers unraveled under Phoenix’s pressure, committing live-ball turnovers that the Suns turned into highlight-reel runouts possession after possession. What began as a promising start morphed into a 125–108 loss that snapped L.A.’s momentum and exposed some glaring issues on the tail end of a back-to-back.

🔥 Suns’ Pressure Smothered Dončić

Dončić went from unstoppable to overwhelmed in a matter of minutes.

Phoenix trapped, rotated, and swarmed him, forcing mistakes in bunches — including a brutal stretch where he turned the ball over on consecutive trips. By the final buzzer, he had committed nine turnovers, almost half of the team’s 21 total.

The numbers were ugly:

• Lakers turnovers: 21
• Points off turnovers (Suns): 32
• Lakers assists: only 18

When you have more turnovers than assists, the result usually looks exactly like Monday’s scoreboard.

🎙️ Redick: “We Got Exposed”

Head coach JJ Redick didn’t dance around the issue postgame. He delivered a blunt assessment of what went wrong.

“If you don’t play hard against that team, you’re gonna get exposed.”

And exposed is exactly what happened.

Even with LeBron James back in the lineup, the Lakers looked sluggish, particularly in transition. James extended his legendary 10-point streak, but only after struggling through one of his roughest outings of the season.

💪 Dillon Brooks, Collin Gillespie Torch LA

To make matters worse, the Lakers were punished by role players who stepped into the spotlight:

• Dillon Brooks: 33 points, bully-ball all night
• Collin Gillespie: 8 threes, completely unanswered

Despite losing Devin Booker to a groin injury in the second quarter, Phoenix stayed locked in, playing with energy and physicality the Lakers never matched.

A huge credit goes to interim coach Jordan Ott and Brooks, who has clearly emerged as an emotional tone-setter for the Suns.

🔄 On to the Next One

There’s no time for the Lakers to dwell. They begin a road trip Thursday against the Toronto Raptors, with Boston and Philadelphia looming right after.

After a night where effort, execution, and discipline all vanished, Redick’s message couldn’t be clearer:

Fix it — or get exposed again.