The Los Angeles Lakers entered April looking like legitimate contenders. Then everything changed when they unexpectedly lost their top two scorers. 

Luka Doncic suffered a grade two hamstring strain with no exact return timeline, while Austin Reaves was diagnosed with an oblique strain expected to sideline him at least four to six weeks. Both injuries came in the same game against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

After initially focusing on securing the third seed in the West following Doncic's diagnosis, JJ Redick shifted his messaging entirely once Reaves' injury became known, saying "seeding is out the window." With their two best players gone and the playoffs less than two weeks away, the Lakers need everybody to step up.

Drew Timme has been one of the voices carrying the next-man-up message inside the locker room. When asked what Redick has been telling the group with both stars out, Timme didn't hold back.

"I mean essentially, like, we gotta battle," Timme said. "No matter who we have or don't have, we have to play hard, we have to compete. I mean, we're the Lakers. There's a standard, you know? We gotta try our best to meet that every day, and continue to keep working and finish strong headed into the playoffs by any means necessary."

That's the mentality Redick has been pushing. It's not complicated, it's just compete, and right now that's being tested at the worst time on the calendar. You of course always prepare to be ready when key guys go down, but this is simply the most challenging part of the season for it to happen in. 

In the first game without both stars, LeBron James put up 30 points on 12-for-22 shooting with 15 assists and nine rebounds in a 134-128 loss to Dallas. It wasn't enough, but LeBron doing LeBron things is pretty much what survival mode looks like for this team right now.

The starting lineup that night hadn't played together all season, much less started a game together. Redick's job over these final few regular season games is to find something that works before the first round gets here.

The Lakers aren't just hoping for the best either. Both Doncic and Reaves are reportedly motivated to return during the playoffs, and that's a shared goal the organization is working toward.

Redick has been straightforward about what the absence of the stars means for the guys who are healthy. "Both those guys are going to try to come back, and it's our job to extend the season so that they can come back," he said.

The Lakers sit at 50-29 with three games left. Win as many of those games as you can, stay healthy, and maybe Doncic and Reaves are back by the time things actually matter. That's the plan for right now.