Redick's halftime adjustment to blitz Jamal Murray limited his scoring.
The Los Angeles Lakers earned a hard-fought 115-107 victory in Denver on Tuesday night, and the defensive game plan against Nuggets star Jamal Murray played a big role in the comeback win.
Murray entered the game playing some of the best basketball of his career, averaging 25.9 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 7.3 assists on the season while stepping up as Denver's top option with three-time MVP Nikola Jokic sidelined by a knee injury.
The Nuggets guard torched the Lakers in the first half with 26 points on four three-pointers, and Denver built a 16-point lead heading into the third quarter after Murray's season-long surge had him looking like a first-time All-Star lock.
The Game Plan
After watching Murray dominate through two quarters, Lakers head coach JJ Redick made a simple but effective adjustment at halftime by blitzing the guard and forcing the ball out of his hands on every possession.
"Well, it took him out of his rhythm," Redick said after the game. "By the time he had taken a shot in the second half it was well into the fourth quarter. So, that's the first thing. It was literally, let's just get the ball out of his hands."
The strategy worked to perfection as Murray was held to just two points on 1-of-5 shooting in the second half, and Los Angeles outscored Denver 58-36 after halftime to complete the comeback and move to 26-16 on the season.
Luka Doncic led the charge with a triple-double of 24 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists while LeBron James added 22 points as the Lakers showed the defensive intensity that Redick has been trying to implement all season long.
Looking Ahead
The Nuggets dropped to 29-15 with the loss, though they remain in strong position in the Western Conference standings even without Jokic in the lineup.
The victory was a much-needed boost for the Lakers, who had struggled in recent weeks with injuries and inconsistent play before putting together a complete second-half effort in Denver.
Los Angeles now heads into one of the toughest stretches of their schedule with their longest road trip of the season beginning this week.
The trip includes stops in Los Angeles to face the Clippers, followed by games in Dallas, Chicago, Cleveland, and Washington, a grueling six-game stretch that will test the depth and resolve of Redick's roster heading into February.
If the Lakers can defend like they did in the second half against Murray and the Nuggets, they have a real chance to keep climbing the Western Conference standings and prove they belong among the contenders.