The Los Angeles Lakers lost in embarrassing fashion to their hated rivals the Boston Celtics. It’s frustrating, but there’s no reason to overreact to a single loss on the second night of a back-to-back. Fatigue was real, the legs were heavy, and the schedule finally caught up to them. Still, while the loss itself isn’t alarming, it did expose issues the Lakers have carried all season. If they want to get back to their winning ways — and look like a true contender — these are the five problems they need to fix immediately.
1. Limit Turnovers
The Lakers commit way too many turnovers. What makes them concerning isn’t just the number, but how avoidable many of them are. Slow, telegraphed passes. Jump passes without a target. Austin Reaves over-dribbling into crowds. Luka forcing hit-ahead passes that require perfect timing. These aren’t the turnovers of a team being overwhelmed; they’re the turnovers of a team being careless.
The Lakers don’t have overwhelming speed or elite athletes to cover up these mistakes. Every extra possession they give away hurts twice as much. This fix doesn’t require a scheme change — just sharper fundamentals. Two-hand passes, early reads, and eliminating the casualness that slips into their offense when they try to play faster than they’re built for.
2. Transition Defense
This ties directly back to the turnover problem. The fewer you have, the fewer transition possessions you’re forced to defend. For whatever reason, the Lakers haven’t been a good transition team for years, and every extra turnover just amplifies that weakness. In a sense, they’re shooting themselves in the foot twice — once by losing the possession, and again by having to defend in the open floor.
Transition defense is the Lakers’ most fixable flaw and the one with the biggest payoff. Too often, the first steps back are slow. Too often, players are complaining to the refs instead of getting back on defense. Too often, wings stare at the play instead of sprinting.
This team doesn’t have the personnel to be an elite transition defense, but it has enough to be consistent. Everyone has to sprint back with purpose, not drift into matchups later. If the Lakers clean this up, they immediately become harder to run off the floor.
3. LeBron Has to Be Aggressive
Even at 40, LeBron is still one of the Lakers’ leaders, and the rest of the team follows his vibe. When he rebounds, pushes tempo, and imposes his strength early, everything snaps into place. The offense flows quicker. The spacing stabilizes. Austin and Luka don’t have to create every advantage. But when LeBron plays in a lower gear, the entire team feels the drag.
The Lakers don’t need him to score 35. He doesn’t need to hijack every possession. But at the same time, he can’t just stand around doing nothing on both ends. Especially in lineups without Luka, LeBron should be the main offensive initiator with his downhill pressure. They need his force, his rebounding, his decision-making, and the pace he sets simply by attacking earlier in the clock. When he’s assertive, the team becomes sharper on both ends.
4. Managing Minutes
JJ Redick needs to be smarter in how he manages his players’ minutes. On the first night of the recent back-to-back in New Orleans, the Lakers led comfortably late in the fourth quarter. The game was secure, yet JJ Redick kept his full rotation on the floor. Austin, Luka, and Rui all played deeper into the fourth than necessary.
When it was time to face Phoenix, everyone not named Luka looked drained. Back-to-backs are a league-wide issue, and a few minutes of rest probably wouldn’t have changed the outcome. But they would’ve given themselves a better chance to win. Redick has to trust his bench to close out routine wins and prioritize rest when the schedule squeezes them. The Lakers don’t need lineup miracles; they need practical minutes management.
5. Balance the Rotation
The Lakers need more defensive balance in their lineups. Too many of their current combinations are offense-heavy, leaving them vulnerable on defense. The clearest example is the LeBron–Rui–Ayton trio. They are talented offensive players who don’t have the footspeed or defensive range to cover for one another.
Without a true perimeter stopper in that group, Ayton is left to clean up everything, and the defense collapses. This is where someone like Marcus Smart becomes crucial. Even though he was injured in the last game, his presence gives those units a defensive identity and keeps the Lakers from relying purely on offense to survive.
Rui also needs to be used more strategically. He’s far more effective at the 4 than guarding wings. His minutes should be staggered with LeBron, not overlapping. When they share the floor, the defense slows down, and the spacing tightens.
The fix is simple: pair offense with defense and ensure every lineup has at least one high-motor, defensive-minded guard or wing. If the Lakers improve their balance, the entire rotation will make much more sense.
Bottom Line
The loss to Boston wasn’t a reason to panic, but it was a reminder. A reminder that habits matter, that rest matters, and that structure matters. The Lakers will likely need a trade to address their biggest issues, but until that happens, they need to find the solutions internally. These require commitment and consistency. Fix these five areas, and the Lakers will stop tripping over their own weaknesses and start looking like the team they expect to be.
