If the Lakers are going to stay hot, they’re going to have to avoid the problem of playing down to the level of their competition.
They failed in that sense in their 118-108 victory over visiting Sacramento on Sunday night. Lakers coach Phil Jackson was very dissatisfied by the team’s defensive effort against a Kings team missing Kevin Martin (ankle).
“Defensively, we weren’t happy with our game,” Jackson said. “We have a younger team defensively, and they are still learning.”
The Lakers have a cushy schedule coming up, so they’ll be wise to do better in their efforts against middle-of-the-road teams.
The Lakers have a stream of teams near .500 coming up: New Jersey, Dallas, Toronto, Indiana, Philadelphia, Milwaukee, Minnesota, New York and Miami—with a game against the Eastern Conference’s worst team, Washington, in that mix also.
With five wins by an average of 22.4 points under their belt, the Los Angeles Lakers will try to start 6-0 for the first time since 2001-02 when they begin a two-night, two-game road trip against the Dallas Mavericks. (AP Image)
Four of their five wins have come by at least 18 points, including a 111-82 thumping of Houston, making the Lakers the best ATS team in the league so far. The scary part is that Kobe Bryant has not had to do it all by himself. Bryant has only scored 30 points once in the Lakers’ first five games after doing so 36 times last season.
The Dallas Mavericks finally got that elusive home win on Friday against Memphis, making them 1-4 at the American Airlines Center, but more importantly it extended their winning streak to four games.
Now with three days to rest before Indiana comes to town, the Mavs feel as though they’re building some chemistry and consistency, although in waves. Their performances might start to level out with a favorable schedule ahead.
Considering the entire Southwest Division is struggling, the Mavs find themselves one game under .500, but just two games out of the division lead.
“It’s all beginning to come together for this,” said backup guard J.J. Barea is starting to get more traction in the rotation.
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