Lakers vs Cavaliers Preview and Prediction: Can the Baby Lakers Contain the King?

After snapping their eight-game losing streak against the worst team in the East, the Lakers will visit the reigning world champion Cleveland Cavaliers.

If you haven’t had your “Where’s Kobe?” moment this year, there’s a good chance that moment will come tonight. For 13 years, Kobe Bryant and LeBron James were like Batman and Superman, but like “Dawn of Justice” Batman and Superman.

They played against each other for the final time earlier this year, and while the Lakers didn’t come out with the win, it was a fun little duel between the Mamba and the King.

Alas, those days are over and the Baby Lakers are going to have to do some heavy lifting on both ends of the floor if they want to steal a win on the road. Here’s where to catch tonight’s game:

Los Angeles Lakers at Cleveland Cavaliers

Date: Wednesday, Dec. 14
Start Time: 4:30 p.m. PST
Location: Cleveland, OH
Arena: Quicken Loans Arena
TV Info: TWC Sportsnet
Live Stream: NBA League Pass
Radio: Here

Prediction

While the Lakers have given me every reason to bet against them recently, I have them winning tonight. It’s not going to be easy, but it’s do-able.

The Cavs are leading the league in corner 3-point percentage–a la Kevin Love–so perimeter defense is going to be a huge factor tonight. Anyone with eyeballs and a decent knowledge of the game knows that the Lakers aren’t the best defensive team in the league.

Cleveland also has the luxury of having really good players like Kyrie Irving, Kevin Love , LeBron James and sometimes J.R. Smith. What they don’t have, however, is Timofey Mozgov.

Mozgov was a huge part of the Cavs championship run in 2015, but he saw his role shrink the season after. Five years and $65 million later, Mozgov is suiting up for the Purple and Gold.

If that’s not reason enough to have the Lakers tonight, nothing is.

Next: Larry Nance Jr. humiliates Brook Lopez

Do you like analysis and silly tweets? Then @TheLakeShowLife is a must follow on Twitter for you! We will be live tweeting the game from tipoff, and depending on the Lakers do–partying.