The Los Angeles Lakers, led by rookie head coach JJ Redick, put on quite the show in Saturday night’s win against a familiar rival, the Denver Nuggets. The Lakers were able to limit reigning MVP Nikola Jokic to only 12 points, while simultaneously forcing 20 turnovers in the dominant road win.

Although the magnitude of the win was outstanding due to the Lakers snapping an eight-game road losing streak against the Nuggets, this Los Angeles team is no stranger to great basketball as of late. They currently own the No. 1 defense over the last 17 games (via StatMuse), leading to a 13-4 record in that span.

After the statement win, Redick applauded his team’s defensive effort and conviction. A video from the locker room has surfaced via the Lakers on X where Redick can be heard speaking to his players.

“Pregame, I’m laying on the floor doing my breathing exercises, I’m envisioning what our team is gonna play like,” Redick said. “And you guys went even higher … And frankly, our conviction and our belief in the game plan … Everybody that was on Jokic tonight was awesome tonight.”

In his rookie campaign, Redick has been quite the leader for this Lakers squad. After Saturday’s game, opposing head coach for the Nuggets Michael Malone admitted Redick out-coached him.

“We were outplayed tonight, we were out-coached tonight,” Malone admitted.

The Lakers are benefits of a five-win increase in wins through 55 games this year compared to last year’s squad coached by Darvin Ham. With 27 games remaining, the Lakers are looking to build on their 14-4 record over the last 18 games to make a push for the second overall seed in the Western Conference.