The Lakers are in their second of a five-game home stand. The first game didn’t go so well as they turned in a somewhat listless performance against the Minnesota Timberwolves. With a lot of the West teams losing, they had a chance to get into the Top 10 but they couldn’t get it done.
Well, they have another chance to possibly get to the 10th spot as they have a Sunday afternoon date with the Golden State Warriors. It’s their third time taking on the defending champions in less than a month. The Lakers have taken the last two against them.
This game might feel a bit different, though. Stephen Curry is expected to play against the Lakers and that changes things drastically. The spacing, the shooting, the presence of Curry alone should give pause to the defense.
Heck, Klay Thompson even feels a bit different right now. The Warriors have won their last five games (right after their loss to the Lakers, too) and Klay is averaging a sizzling 28.6 points per while shooting .509 from three in that stretch. Safe to say that the Lakers will also have to pay attention to him.
Jordan Poole continues to provide scoring punch even when he doesn’t shoot well. He did have big games against Portland (29 points) and the Clippers (34 points). He hasn’t shot well from three all year but he’s dangerous when he gets to the rim.
As for the others, we know what Draymond Green will do. Jonathan Kuminga’s had back-to-back games of 19 points and he’s becoming an increasingly better player. Donte DiVincenzo is healthy and will do whatever it takes to make an impact on both ends. And of course, Kevon Looney eats all the rebounds.
The caveat, of course, is that this five-game winning streak by the Dubs was done exclusively in San Francisco. Away from Chase Center, the Warriors are a baffling 7-23. The home and road splits are maddening. Their defense is incredible at home but porous on the road.
Still, the Lakers shouldn’t expect that to hold, especially since we’re coming into the last five weeks of the season. Defense was the key in both of their wins; in early February, Anthony Davis came through with some clutch blocks and in late February, the Warriors were held to .381 shooting from the field. They’re going to have to do that again for Sunday and it’s going to be a bit more difficult with Stephen Curry around. Hopefully, Darvin Ham tearing into their focus and effort in his post presser last Friday lights a fire in the team.
As for the rest of the injury report, D’Angelo Russell is still out even though it had been mentioned that he had been ramping up activity before Friday’s game. On the Warriors side, Andrew Wiggins continues to miss games due to personal reasons. Hopefully, he’s doing okay.
Another important game coming up for the Lakers. This time, they should try to help themselves. If they really want that play-in spot, they should go ahead and grab it instead of waiting for others to lose and drop out.
