Los Angeles Lakers schedule: Predicting every game of the 21-22 season
By Jason Reed
November 2 vs. Houston Rockets: Win
Take everything that I just wrote about the previous Rockets game and apply it here. An extra game against the Lakers is not going to do anything for Houston.
November 4 vs. Oklahoma City Thunder: Win
Take everything I wrote about the first Thunder matchup, minus Westbrook playing in front of the OKC fans, and apply it here. The Lakers beat the Thunder even more soundly at home in the second matchup.
November 6 at Portland Trail Blazers: Loss
Damian Lillard always seems to elevate his game against the Los Angeles Lakers. He has a big game with Russell Westbrook guarding him and it goes down to the last second with the Lakers missing the game-winning shot against Portland.
November 8 vs. Charlotte Hornets: Win
A one-game road trip ends with the Lakers returning home to face an interesting Charlotte Hornets team. While they should be a playoff team in the East, the Lakers should still get the job done.
November 10 vs. Miami Heat: Win
The Miami Heat are a great team that has the potential to be really special if Kyle Lowry and Victor Oladipo can play to their potential. That being said, the cross-country road trip is a tough one for the Heat, so lose this one at the buzzer.
November 12 vs. Minnesota Timberwolves: Win
The Minnesota Timberwolves are still one of the worst teams in the league and the Lakers are one of the best.
November 14 vs. San Antonio Spurs: Win
The San Antonio Spurs are still one of the worst teams in the league and the Lakers are one of the best… deja vu?
November 15 vs. Chicago Bulls: Loss
This is the last game before the first real road trip of the season for the Lakers, the second leg of a back-to-back and the third game in four days. The Lakers will be looking ahead to the road trip and will overlook a Bulls team that is sneaky good. This ends a nice opening stretch for LA in which 12 of their first 15 games are at home.
November 17 at Milwaukee Bucks: Loss
While I think the Los Angeles Lakers are the better team, the defending champs get the job done at home to give the Lakers their first losing streak of the season. Don’t panic. Every single team has them.
November 19 at Boston Celtics: Win
This matchup is always a great one because of the history but the Boston Celtics just are not as good as they should have been. It will be a fun game but an inevitable Lakers win.
November 21 at Detroit Pistons: Win
Cade Cunningham will do all he can to impress the player that he thinks is the greatest of all time but it won’t be near enough for the Pistons to defeat the Lakers.
November 23 at New York Knicks: Win
This is a game that LeBron will get up for as he loves to play at Madison Square Garden even if the Knicks are not that great (they over-performed last season). LeBron has a signature game and the Lakers win.
November 24 at Indiana Pacers: Loss
The Lakers’ first road trip ends in a loss on a back-to-back against a Pacers team that is more talented than people give them credit for.
November 26 vs. Sacramento Kings: Win
The Sacramento Kings are not a very good basketball team that does not really have a direction, which is the worst place to be. Easy win for the Lakers.
November 28 vs. Detroit Pistons: Win
Cunningham tries yet again to impress LeBron with a big game. He gets the classic LeBron conversation after the game with the jersey over his mouth, but still loses.
November 30 at Sacramento Kings: Win
Playing in Sacramento vs. playing in Los Angeles is not going to change the outcome. This is a classic Westbrook game in which he wills the team to a win that they otherwise would not have really cared about.