JJ Wants More Defense From Luka and LeBron. Plus, Banshees Offense and Ayton Out vs. Jazz

The Lakers have a sneaky-tough game in Utah Thursday against a Jazz team that has righted the ship after an awful start to the year. LA, still without Austin Reaves, will also be short Deandre Ayton, who will miss the game with an elbow injury. 

Maxi Kleber should be available, so the Lakers will have two centers to use against Utah's size, but how will JJ Redick change his rotation? 

He certainly hopes he gets more defense from Luka Dončić and LeBron James. Luka spoke at Wednesday's practice about how he and The King were called out by the coach, who is demanding more from his stars as the Lakers suffer through a bad stretch of team defense. It's possible the Lakers could catch a break, as Utah star Lauri Markkanen is now listed as questionable with groin injury management. (Perhaps the Jazz want to stop this run of competence before it catches hold.) The Lakers would still need to deal with guard Keyonte George, who has made a leap this season after showing signs last year.

Meanwhile, the Lakers are working hard to build a sustainable culture, and a consistent level of play no matter who is available to them on any given night. They're not at that point yet. Urgency is always an issue - not necessarily in ways that often get confused with effort, but in things like pace and attention to detail. 

HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky 

SEGMENT 1: No Ayton in Utah. 

SEGMENT 2: Building a culture means asking stars to do stuff and holding them to a standard. 

SEGMENT 3: Banshees on O, too? 

Everydayer Club  
If you never miss an episode, it’s time to make it official. Join the Locked On Everydayer Club and get ad-free audio, access to our members-only Discord, and more — all built for our most loyal fans. 

Click here to learn more and join your team’s community: https://lockedonpodcasts.com/everydayerclub

Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!

SKIMS
Shop SKIMS Men’s now at https://SKIMS.com.
When you place your order, choose “podcast” in the post-purchase survey and select our show from the dropdown to let them know we sent you. 
The SKIMS Holiday Shop is open — so if you’re looking for the perfect gift this season, SKIMS has you covered. 
 

Gusto
Try Gusto today at https://gusto.com/lockedonNBA and get three months free when you run your first payroll.
 

Rugiet
Visit https://rugiet.com/locked