The Lakers (7-2) are back home, where they will host a rematch with the Portland Trail Blazers (6-1) on Friday. The matchup will also serve as an NBA Cup contest, with both teams competing in West Group C.
Start time and TV schedule
Who: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Portland Trail Blazers
When: 7 p.m. PT, Nov. 6
Where: Crypto.com Arena
Watch: Spectrum Sportsnet
One of the Lakers’ two losses this season came at the hands of the Trail Blazers, who ran the purple and goldoff their home floor last week. That was the same game that exposed
the Lakers’ early flaws such as their inability to rebound the ball well, over reliance on Luka Dončić and overall team defense. While those weaknesses are still apparent, the Lakers have done a better job of navigating them and responding since that loss.
On Friday, they have the chance to get even.
This will be a good opportunity to see whether the Lakers have learned from their loss, how they’ve adjusted and how determined they are to make a run in the NBA Cup after losing pretty badly in the opener against the Warriors.
Here are three storylines worth noting ahead of the matchup between the Lakers and Blazers:
Ja Morant won’t be suiting up
Morant was a huge factor in the Blazers’ first victory over the Lakers, posting 23 points. He easily got in the paint and scored nine out of his 13 attempts. It felt like the Lakers had no answer for him. Fortunately for the purple and gold, they won’t have to think about Ja on Friday because he’s currently recovering from a Grade 2 hamstring injury.
Instead, the Lakers should expect more touches for Deni Avdija, Damian Lillard and Scoot Henderson, who replaced Morant in the starting lineup.
How will the Lakers’ defense respond?
Defense will be the biggest key for the Lakers if they want to come away with a win. In their previous meeting, Los Angeles allowed Portland to shoot 50% from beyond the arc while giving up 56 points in the paint. The Blazers’ hot shooting may have been an outlier but there’s no guarantee it won’t happen again if the Lakers don’t tighten things up defensively. The Blazers have enough scoring to match the Lakers’ firepower.
Portland is the seventh-best rebounding team in the league and currently has a top-10 offensive and defensive rating. They lead the league in points per game (121.9), which is why they’re a tough cover. This isn’t one of those teams the Lakers can just overwhelm with Dončić’s brilliance and talent alone. They’ll have to work on both ends of the floor.
Do the Lakers care about the NBA Cup at all?
If their first NBA Cup match was any indication, the Lakers didn’t seem too interested in making a statement, which is unfortunate because these games are so much fun to win. Hopefully that changes for this one because it’s pretty much a do-or-die game for the Lakers if they want to stay alive in the NBA Cup. Not only are they 0-1, they have a concerning -17 point differential and, if they want to increase their chances of advancing, they’re going to need to win in some blow outs.
It’s a tough task but one the purple and gold should aim to do if they truly want to exact revenge against the Blazers on Friday.
Notes and Updates
- The Lakers and Warriors are the only ones in West Group C that have played in the NBA Cup so far, but expect the standings to change on Friday when the Spurs and Kings go at it.
- For the Lakers’ injury report, Sandro Mamukelashvili (illness) is listed as questionable.
- Bronny James Jr., (G-League) and Cameron Carr (G-League) will be with the Coachella Valley Lakers.
- As for the Blazers, Vit Krejci (left ankle fracture), Ja Morant (left hamstring strain) and Shaedon Sharpe (right meniscus surgery) are out.
You can follow Nicole on Twitter at @nicoleganglani.
