The Lakers’ latest win came in a spot that could have turned messy fast: on the road against the Clippers, with Luka Doncic out and little margin for error. Instead, Los Angeles stayed organized, leaned on a strong group effort, and walked away with a 103-87 victory to keep its hot start rolling.
Afterward, JJ Redick pointed to two players in particular as examples of how the roster is starting to fit together. He singled out the way Jarred Vanderbilt and Sandro Mamukelashvili work alongside one another, saying the combination gives the Lakers something useful in the frontcourt.
“Yeah, it was good,” Redick said. “I think we had (Vanderbilt) on Lopez.
He did a great job. We showed a clip at halftime of fronting him in the post and not allowing him to get the basketball.
Vando is always gonna play hard, he’s always gonna impact the game with just his effort. I thought he did that tonight.
The pairing with Mamu is probably the best pairing in terms of having another big out there that can space and shoot and play-make.”
That frontcourt balance has become one of the more encouraging parts of the Lakers’ start. Walker Kessler and Ziaire Williams were in the starting group, which has allowed Vanderbilt and Mamukelashvili to bring energy and skill to the second unit. Against the Clippers, their minutes often overlapped, and the blend worked: Vanderbilt handled the defensive dirty work, while Mamu provided the shot-making.
Collin Sexton has been another early bright spot. In 21 minutes against the Clippers, he scored 21 points with four rebounds and two assists, while shooting 54.5% from the field. Redick was clear about how much that kind of burst matters.
“I think there’s a level of insanity with him and I think our team responds to insanity,” Redick added. “It’s a good thing.
He comes in the game and you know he’s in the game. I think defensively he’s trying to apply ball pressure.
He’s trying to make hard closeouts. He’s trying to push the basketball.
He’s trying to touch the paint. There’s an intensity to all that stuff, and our guys responded.”
It’s still early, but the early returns suggest some of the questions around this roster may have been overdone. If Sexton, Vanderbilt, Mamukelashvili and Quentin Grimes keep producing at this level, Luka Doncic should have plenty of help.
And the Lakers still haven’t even had their full group together. Cameron Carr and Adou Thiero have both been sidelined with injuries, and Ziaire Williams was also out for tonight’s game because of left heel soreness.
For now, the message around the Lakers is simple: the pieces are fitting, the effort is there, and Redick’s system is getting buy-in. This may not be a roster loaded with headlines, but it looks like one that works.
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