The Los Angeles Lakers are going through a rough patch at the moment. Head coach JJ Redick’s team has lost three straight games and five of its last seven matchups. L.A.’s latest loss came against the short-handed Phoenix Suns side, missing the likes of Dillon Brooks and Devin Booker. In their absence, it was veteran Royce O’Neal, who stepped up and knocked a clutch 3-pointer, handing the Suns a 113-110 win, and forcing a strong admission from Redick.

“We talk about this as stuff. Like, our losses are louder than other teams, ’cause we’re the Lakers, and because of the way we lose,” Redick said during the postgame presser. “You get this deep in the season, and, again, tonight was a one-possession clutch game, which, now we’ve lost a few of those. But we’ve been great, for the most part, in the clutch all year. Our losses are louder.”

There’s no doubt that these defeats have made the spotlight, under which the Purple & Gold eternally are, even more intense. This is something that the Lakers’ head coach is fully aware of, as he pointed out how uncommon the last two of the three losses have been. More so, because L.A. has the best clutch record in the league with 16 wins and just 5 losses in the qualifying games.

The storied franchise has shot 56.4 percent from the field and 43.6 percent from beyond the arc during such instances, which is quite impressive to say the least. Although they couldn’t do so against the Orlando Magic on Tuesday night, they did respond to that against Phoenix. Still, they ultimately fell short, as JJ Redick took full responsibility for allowing the Suns to execute their plan down the stretch without any problems.

“Did we not respond? Yeah, no, I thought our guys were great with that tonight. I mean, there’s a basketball’s a game of mistakes, and we made mistakes. Just like I make mistakes,” Redick further emphasized. “I don’t think I’ve coached a perfect game. I don’t think their players, Grayson Allen, kicked our buddies, 9 for 24. Like, that’s the game. And so, I think our guys responded tonight.”

While the loss was agonizing, it seems the second-year head coach is confident his team will be able to pull out of this slump. Well, given the offensive prowess the Lakers possess, with the likes of Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, and LeBron James at their disposal, that should be no problem. Despite that, Los Angeles can no longer ignore a problem on their roster.

JJ Redick needs to address a glaring issue with the Lakers’ starting lineup

After Thursday’s humbling defeat, the Los Angeles Lakers now find themselves 6th in the Western Conference with a 34-24 record. With the Suns now just two games behind them, the margin for error for the Purple & Gold is quite slim. Amid this, they can no longer keep trusting Deandre Ayton, who has been quite inconsistent throughout the campaign thus far.

Even though the former No. 1 pick entered this game coming off a solid performance against the Magic, he was a non-factor against his former employers. The big man scored just 2 points from 1-of-3 shooting from the field, along with four rebounds in 23 minutes of action. This was such a terrible outing for the 27-year-old; the Lakers lost his 23 minutes by a whopping 24 points.

So, what’s the solution? Well, contrary to Ayton, Los Angeles looked like a more complete outfit with Jaxson Hayes, who had just returned from an ankle injury. Hayes not only looked much more energetic than Ayton, but also protected the rim better and dominated the glass. The 25-year-old finished the game with 6 points, 8 rebounds, and one block in 21 minutes of action.

It goes without saying that Jaxson Hayes had a much better time on the court than Deandre Ayton. So, with the playoff berths on the line, it seems like JJ Redick should lean more toward the young center, rather than sticking with Ayton. While that seems to be the best route forward for the Lakers, whether or not Redick follows this will be worth watching in the upcoming games.