Los Angeles Lakers: The Toughest week of the season lies ahead

The Los Angeles Lakers have a huge week coming up. Here’s why they must succeed against some the best teams in the league.

There was always that one week of the semester in college that it seemed like everything was due. Somehow, it was as if all of your professors had gotten together and decided to assign three papers, four projects and two speeches to be due during the same five-day stretch. What are the odds, of all the weeks, that all of the most important assignments are due at the same time? Not very high, one would think.

The Los Angeles Lakers appear to have run into the same problem as they approach the upcoming week. During the week of March 2nd, the Lakers play three of the teams that occupy a very short list of squads that Los Angeles has not been able to best this campaign.

The Lakers will play three of their toughest games this year at Staples Center this coming week. The 76ers and Bucks will travel to Los Angeles on Tuesday and Friday, respectively. Then, on Sunday, the Lakers will play the Clippers for the third time this season, looking for their first win of the year against LAC.

One of the most obvious sources of criticism this season for the Lakers has stemmed from their inability to defeat elite teams. Philadelphia, Milwaukee, and Los Angeles have accounted for a third of the Lakers’ combined losses this year, contributing four of the twelve tallies in the loss column.

Without question, this will be the most important week of the season for the Lakers, thus far. They will have an opportunity to avenge each of those four losses. The opportunity to cement themselves as the favorites to come out of the Western conference.

The purple and gold must be feeling pretty good right now. They are in the midst of yet another five-plus game winning streak, undefeated since the All-Star break. The Lakers are looking better every night, especially in the Alex Caruso minutes. LeBron recently went for a season-high, 40 points. The focus of the team can not change, considering what lies ahead.

The role players must continue to contribute, Markieff Morris must make his presence known. Frank Vogel has got to recognize his best lineups. The Lakers finally have the opportunity to vanquish their most often postulated shortcoming. If Los Angeles is able to defeat all three of these teams, or even two, the narrative will shift. For this to happen, though, the Lakers need to play to the best of their ability. Their defense needs to be consistent, their offense needs to limit turnovers. It can be accomplished, but an encore of the Lakers performance against New Orleans will not be enough. The Lakers need to play at a playoff-type level.

The Lakers traveled to Philadelphia to play the Sixers on January 25. It did not go well. The Lakers lost by 17 points, 108-91. Anthony Davis and LeBron James combined for 60 points, but no other Laker reached double figures. If LAL hopes for a different outcome, the supporting cast has to play better. The Lakers kept it close that night, but the 76ers were able to pull away in the fourth quarter due to lack of scoring from the Lakers.

More from Lake Show Life

On December 19th of this season, the Lakers played the Bucks in Milwaukee. Were the Lakers coming off, arguably, the toughest stretch of the season thus far? Yes. Did they play well against the Bucks? No. Anthony Davis had 36 points and 10 rebounds and LeBron had a triple-double, but James did not shoot well.

On this night, too, the Lakers lacked support from the players that were not their two superstars. The Lakers reserves were outscored 34-4 by the Bucks. This effort can not be re-created on March 6. The Bucks still have a positive net-rating without their best player. The same can’t be said about the Lakers. Giannis Antetokounmpo dominated the Lakers in their last game in Milwaukee, too, including making five out of eight three pointers. While Giannis likely will not replicate that shooting performance, the Lakers need to do a much better job of slowing him down if they want to beat the team with the NBA’s best record in Los Angeles.

Finally, the Clippers. The Lakers’ Los Angeles rivals. The Lakers have to be salivating over this game. The nauseating taste that the last two games against the Clippers has left in the Lakers’ mouths has been evident since Christmas Day.

On Opening Night, the Lakers were just not clicking. It was their first game together, as the Lakers overhauled their roster this summer.

But that Christmas Day game, man. They had that game.

In the fourth quarter, the Lakers could not buy a bucket. Kyle Kuzma provided relief in the first half, but in this game, as well, LeBron and Anthony Davis lacked help. The Lakers are a better team than the Clippers. They should have beaten them, conceivably, both times they met this season. Now that the Lakers are a more complete team, they need to capitalize. Losing another game to the Clippers could be detrimental to the psyche of the Lakers if the two teams meet in the playoffs.

Next. Remaining question marks for the Lakers. dark

This upcoming week, the Lakers face the most difficult test to this date as a unit. Their defense will need to be superb. LeBron and AD will need to play their best basketball. Most importantly, the Kentavious Caldwell-Popes, the Danny Greens, the Kyle Kuzmas of the world need to play well and make their presence known. They can not continue to disappear in big games, the Lakers’ superstars are not able to beat the best teams in the NBA on their own.

This week looms large. Are the Lakers up to the challenge?

Home/Lakers News