The Los Angeles Lakers continue to win games, even when star players are out of action. Guard Collin Sexton has stepped up amidst a tough schedule for the Lakers. The brutal back-to-back was already tough on the road against the Detroit Pistons and Atlanta Hawks. Things got tougher with Luka Doncic missing Sunday’s game vs Detroit and Austin Reaves out on Monday against the Hawks. However, the Lakers managed to win both games in an impressive fashion.
Head coach JJ Redick praised Sexton and revealed why he’s an x-factor for the Lakers this year:
“The last two games have been a great example of next guy up. And I’ve talked about this before; there’s a compounding effect to having the guys out of the lineup. Do you have enough ball-handling on the floor, enough rebounding on the floor, or enough shooting on the floor?
You lose AR, you lose Q, and now you’re down a couple of guys, so I thought Collin did a really nice job of attacking the paint, scoring, giving us some juice, especially in the first half.”
Reaves and Quentin Grimes were ruled out earlier in the day before the Lakers visited Atlanta. Both stepped up with Doncic missing Sunday afternoon’s game. Sexton played well in both games and was significantly pivotal tonight with 18 points and 6 assists. Redick loves that other guards can step up in games where Luka or Reaves sit out.
Multiple Lakers Role Players Joined Collin Sexton
Sexton was not the only role player to step up with the injuries and more minutes up for grabs. Sandro Mamukelashvili had his best game of the season off the bench with an astonishing 23 points on 5 of 8 shooting from three-point range.
Doncic vouched for the Lakers to sacrifice draft picks and money to make Walker Kessler their next starting center. Games like tonight backed up why Luka wants a center of Kessler’s playing style on the court with him.
Kessler put up 21 points and 10 rebounds to continue his strong start to the season. Doncic led all scorers with 32 points, but it was a “slow” night for him to harm his 40-point average. The Lakers also played good defense against All-Star Jalen Johnson to limit him to just 15 points for a good overall night.
When Will Austin Reaves Return For Lakers?
The missed game for Reaves was a fluke of him dealing with an illness and playing too many minutes the night before. Reaves outplayed Cade Cunningham for the Lakers to upset the Pistons without Luka active.
Redick played it safe with Reaves and will likely have him back in the lineup on Wednesday against the Milwaukee Bucks. The Lakers could also play it safe again vs a weaker team if Reaves continues to deal with the illness.
Regardless, the team is in a great spot now with a 10-2 record and the ability to win with stars missing games. Sexton was named by Redick for representing the “next man up” mentality that the Lakers hope to represent all season.
JJ Redick Praises Collin Sexton As Major X-Factor For Lakers Wins