Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot Gets to Keep His Hair After Keeping J.J. Redick in Check

LOS ANGELES -- A game, and his hair, was on the line for Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot.

The rookie got the start at shooting guard in place of Gerald Henderson, who sat out the Sixers' 112-100 loss to the Clippers on Saturday with left hip soreness as the team rested him in the first game of its back-to-back set. 

Luwawu-Cabarrot was given the challenging assignment of guarding J.J. Redick. The Sixers expected the Clippers to look for their sharpshooter early and often, so they heightened the consequences of his scoring.

"The coaches just made a joke," Luwawu-Cabarrot said. "They knew the first play would be for J.J. Redick, so they said if he scored the first shot, I'd have to cut my hair."

Redick attempted the Clippers' first two shots of the game. He missed both.

Redick scored 12 points in 29 minutes. He shot 4 for 11 from the field and 2 for 8 from long range on the night, below his season averages of 43.8 percent from the field and 41.4 percent from downtown. 

"I think that his athleticism and his improving toughness and improving understanding of NBA basketball is equaling somebody that I feel comfortable playing, and to the point where I felt comfortable ending the game with him," Brown said. "Although the stats don't really show it, he had a solid game and I think defensively, when you look at J.J.'s numbers, I think it confirms it a little."

Luwawu-Cabarrot scored nine points (3 for 8 from the field, 1 for 5 from three) and added four rebounds, an assist and a steal over 33 minutes. He didn't get worked up over his second NBA start, taking the mindset of bringing the same kind of effort he's used to delivering off the bench to the starting lineup. 

"It's just a regular game," he said pregame. "It's kind of the same (as coming off the bench). You start the game to set the tone so that's what I'll try to do."

And after all that...

"I don't have to cut my hair," he said.