The Lakers’ Christmas Day nightmare has exposed more than just defensive breakdowns after getting demolished 119-96 by the Houston Rockets. The situation already looked unbalanced following LeBron James’s Christmas confession. Now, head coach JJ Redick put gasoline on the fire after publicly calling his squad unprofessional. But not everyone’s buying what the second-year coach is selling.
That brutal home loss marked LA’s third straight defeat and dropped them to 19-10 and 4-6 in their last 10 games. Redick didn’t sugarcoat his thoughts following the ugly slide, questioning his team’s professionalism and effort. Now he’s catching heat from a very renowned source.
Kendrick Perkins Rips JJ Redick for Blaming Players, Reminds About Locker Room Respect
Redick went absolutely raw and unfiltered following the Christmas blowout. He didn’t hide his frustration about the roster’s lackluster approach in front of the home crowd on holiday.
“We don’t care enough right now,” Redick said. “And that’s the part that bothers you a lot. We don’t care enough to do the things that are necessary. We don’t care enough to be a professional.”
The first-year head coach promised Saturday’s practice would be uncomfortable. He made it clear he won’t tolerate another 53 games of lackluster effort, calling out repeat offenders without singing their names.
“It’s a matter of making the choice,” Redick continued. “And too often we have guys that don’t want to make that choice. And it’s pretty consistent who those guys are.”
JJ Redick: “We’re a terrible basketball team and tonight we were a terrible basketball team…we don’t care enough to be a professional…we don’t have it right now. Saturday’s practice I told the guys it’s gonna be uncomfortable. The meeting is gonna be uncomfortable. I’m not… pic.twitter.com/gxu42EhO0N
— Oh No He Didn’t (@ohnohedidnt24) December 26, 2025
From the opening minutes against Houston, the Lakers’ effort wasn’t where it needed to be. They quickly lost control of the glass, giving the Rockets extra chances. Defensive confusion stuck around most of the night. A fast start gave Houston breathing room early and by the break, the result felt already settled.
But Kendrick Perkins isn’t impressed with Redick’s public callouts. The former NBA champion and LeBron’s ex-teammate fired back on SportsCenter in his own unfiltered fashion.
“Everybody finds it cute and funny when he goes on his rants and publicly calls out his team,” Perkins said. “But JJ Redick gotta do better as well. It’s always everybody else’s fault but not JJ Redick’s. That’s a problem for me.”
Perk:
“Everybody find it cute and funny when he goes on his rants and publicly calls out his team but JJ Redick gotta do better as well. It’s always everybody else fault but not JJ Redick’s. That’s a problem for me” https://t.co/NwJJC30LN0 pic.twitter.com/Taaqks2ntT
— Oh No He Didn’t (@ohnohedidnt24) December 26, 2025
Perk pointed to the bigger issue, reminding when a team consistently fails to execute, that’s on the coaching staff too.
“When he is talking about his team not being consistent, not playing hard,” Perkins continued. “Well, guess what, that is a reflection on the coach. When your team is not responding, when your team is not putting the effort … that means they are not listening to the coach and the respect level is not there.”
The 14-year NBA veteran knows locker room dynamics. Public criticism can be motivating, but it can also be alienating. Perkins acknowledged that Luka Doncic needs to cut down the ref complaints and bron needs better body language. But he emphasized Redick must look in the mirror too.
Redick is taking a risk with his public criticism. It might motivate the team in the short term, but with the Lakers now on a three-game losing streak, players could start ignoring his noise.
For now, one thing is pretty confirmed that Saturday’s practice will be tense. How the team responds to Redick’s approach will show whether he still has the locker room’s respect.
