The Los Angeles Lakers are in a peculiar position as they won the NBA’s first In-Season Tournament by beating the Indiana Pacers over the weekend and popped champagne in Las Vegas to celebrate.
Usually when a team wins a championship and celebrates accordingly, the season is over and the offseason gets underway. The is obviously a very different situation though as the Lakers return to the court on Tuesday night when they begin a road trip in Dallas against the Mavericks.
Going from playing high-intensity In-Season Tournament games to regular season games in December can definitely be a challenge for a team. Lakers head coach Darvin Ham stressed though that he expects his team to be ready to go in Dallas on Tuesday.
“Like we handle our business all the time,” Ham said of how his team will prepare. “We just stay locked in step, keep our rhythm together, understand that no matter what, we have to be the most competitive, together, accountable team on the floor, and then within that realm we have to bring the energy, the effort and the discipline. This is a great source of positive stimuli for us with this group, trying to come together with guys coming from being inactive to being active and being in rhythm, the continuity and also the heightened awareness because we’re playing an In-Season Tournament.
“I think just everyone being able to have their competitive spirit revealed and people, their comrades to see their competitive spirits was a huge shot in the arm for us. Our group needed this and we needed to win this. If it goes the other way, then you try to rationalize whatever, but the fact that we were able to come here and do what we did — obviously it was a lopsided game here in the semifinal game, but Indiana put up a great fight. Indiana put up a good fight. Young, up-and-coming ballclub. But we needed this. We’ll be okay, man. We’ll be okay, trust me.”
Tuesday is a tough test for the Lakers against one of the best teams in the Western Conference in the Mavericks, although Dallas is missing some key pieces. Kyrie Irving, (right heel contusion), Derrick Jones Jr. (left quad contusion), Josh Green (right elbow sprain) and Maxi Kleber (right small toe dislocation) have all been ruled out.
Additionally, Luka Doncic (low back contusion) and Tim Hardaway Jr. (back spasms) are dealing with their own injuries and were considered questionable although are expected to play.
The Lakers had three questionable players in LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Jarred Vanderbilt although the first two are playing. Vanderbilt, is out for L.A. with low back spasms, however.
With Doncic in the lineup for Dallas, that obviously is priority No. 1 for the Lakers defensively. The good thing is that they have a ton of length they can throw at Doncic, whether it be Cam Reddish, Taurean Prince or Max Christie. Vanderbilt would have been the best option if he were able to play, so Dallas is catching a bit of a break there.
Considering Irving is out, the Lakers will likely trap and double-team Doncic the same way they did Tyrese Haliburton in the In-Season Tournament Finals, forcing other players on the Mavericks to beat them.
Los Angeles Lakers (14-9) vs. Dallas Mavericks (14-8)
4:30 p.m. PT, Nov. 22, 2023
American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
TV: TNT, Spectrum SportsNet
Radio: 710 AM ESPN LA
Projected Lakers starting lineup:
PG: D’Angelo Russell
SG: Cam Reddish
SF: Taurean Prince
PF: LeBron James
C: Anthony Davis
Key Reserves: Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura, Max Christie, Christian Wood, Jaxson Hayes
Projected Mavericks starting lineup:
PG: Luka Doncic
SG: Seth Curry
SF: Dante Exum
PF: Grant Williams
C: Dereck Lively II
Key Reserves: Tim Hardaway Jr., Dwight Powell, Jaden Hardy, Markieff Morris
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