The Los Angeles Lakers earned a much-needed 125-101 win over the Sacramento Kings on Sunday, ending a three-game losing skid that saw the team suffer a trio of embarrassing losses against Western Conference foes in the Suns, Clippers and Rockets.

Luka Doncic led the way for the Lakers in Sunday’s win, pouring in 34 points on 11-of-23 shooting from the field overall. LeBron James added 24 points but was much more efficient than Doncic, making 11-of-13 attempts from the field while also dishing out five assists. 

As a whole, the Lakers responded to coach JJ Redick’s message after Thursday’s loss to Houston, which was that things needed to change quickly for the Lakers. Even without Austin Reaves in the lineup, the Lakers had six scorers in double figures and three players who scored at least 20 points. 

Redick’s message was far more complimentary after the Lakers bounced back with Sunday’s near wire-to-wire win over the Kings. The only mistake of the night, Redick said, was on himself for not calling a timeout early in the fourth quarter to give his team a breather during their one noticeable lapse during the game.

“It was the first game we've had all year that we've won all four quarters,” Redick said. “So, I think that just says a lot about the approach and the consistent mentality that we played with tonight. We simplified our offensive package. I think there was a stretch there to start the fourth where we were playing really hard defensively and we got a little tired.

“Probably should have used my use it or lose it (timeout) a little bit earlier. Just to get those guys a break, because we kind of broke down what we were doing offensively. But overall, it was just consistent basketball for 48 minutes.”

All in all, Redick wasn’t too surprised at the performance Luka and LeBron turned in on Sunday after seeing the mentality and the energy they brought to practice on Saturday. 

“I think for our team to be at our best, that partnership and chemistry has to be excellent, and I've seen real growth this season,” Redick said. “I’m not surprised at the way those two guys played together tonight, because yesterday was one of the best practices we've had with the two of them playing together. 

“Just sharing the basketball, playing two-man action,  and getting to the next thing, and there was a really good carryover from yesterday.”