JJ Redick Announces Key Strategy That Helped Lakers Overcome Problems Caused By Zion Williamson

After facing criticism over his weight and recovering from his injury woes, Zion Williamson needed a game that put him back on the map. The recent matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers provided the player with the opportunity he was seeking. Though the Lakers won the matchup by a 136-115 score, the Pelicans’ power forward kept occasionally shocking the crowd at the Crypto.com Arena with his offensive prowess. His performance was enough for even JJ Redick to consider the 24-year-old a threat.

The Lakers’ head coach participated in a presser after the recent game. When asked about the thing that stood out to him about tonight, Redick replied that every game was different, since it brings its own set of problems. Zion was the problem in this game for the head coach. Redick revealed that the Lakers had been finding success over the last few games by sticking to game plans. If adjustments had to be made to account for certain players, they were made. However, the same strategy did not work against the Pelicans’ power forward.

“You know, we made three different adjustments on him. Didn’t work. He was that good tonight,” said Redick. Despite this trouble, the head coach also highlighted that “We didn’t get discouraged. Didn’t allow us to get offensively. It didn’t take us out of our execution. We stayed very connected. Even with some turnovers, I just thought our approach to the game was really good tonight”.

During his 26 minutes on the court, Zion Williamson recorded 37 points, 4 rebounds, and 6 assists. This was the highest points score he had recorded since the Sacramento Kings matchup in early February. The player became a beast on the field goal front, making 17-23 (73.9%) field goals to make up for his 0 three-pointer attempts. From making a powerful dunk over Trey Jemison III to scoring 15 of his points in the first half itself, the player showed just what a member of the visiting team should do to silence the crowd. With a plus/minus of +13, the recent game may have been one of the player’s best nights of the season, despite the loss.