Clash with lowly Pistons will set crucial tone for Lakers' 2025 postseason dreams

Few believed the Los Angeles Lakers would emerge from the first six games of a grueling schedule at 4-2. Even fewer expected Los Angeles to win three of those games against teams that are widely expected to make the playoffs in 2024-25.

While the Lakers have proven that they can play up to the level of their competition, in order to become a true contender, they must now avoid the pitfalls of playing down to a lesser opponent's quality.

It's a strange phenomenon that exists throughout the wide world of sports. Countless teams and players have the uncanny ability to raise their game when faced with a top-tier opponent, if only for a moment proving capable of an elite level of play.

Once an opposition against whom they're favored to win arrives, however, they just can't seem to find the same level of energy and intensity that's present against the contenders.

There are countless attempted explanations for this persistent truth, but the bottom line is that it happens. That makes the upcoming battle with the Pistons the single most important game of the early season for JJ Redick and the Lakers.

Either the Lakers will prove to be a team that handles its business against teams it's supposed to defeat or it'll reveal itself to be a pretender that must learn to take every opponent seriously.

The first step toward contending is defeating the teams you're meant to

Losses to bad teams happen in every sport, and the NBA is no exception. The Lakers are in a unique position, however, coming off of a 131-125 road victory over the Toronto Raptors that saw Redick's squad overcome an early battle with adversity.

A win is a win no matter how it's come by, but the clash with Toronto was the first time in 2024-25 that the Lakers encountered a team that isn't expected to make the playoffs.

The Lakers' first five games of the season were played against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Phoenix Suns, Sacramento Kings, and Cleveland Cavaliers. They picked up wins against Minnesota and Sacramento, split two games with Phoenix, and were on the wrong side of a blowout in Cleveland.

All four of those teams won at least 46 games in 2023-24 and most agree that they'll all bottom out at appearing in the Play-In Tournament—health permitting.

With back-to-back games against lackluster opponents, the Lakers must take advantage of the opportunity to secure wins during a brutal stretch in the schedule. This will make the fourth of five consecutive road games, with the final trip leading to an encounter with Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies.

As such, losing to Detroit would not only be concerning on the level of how the Lakers approach lesser opponents, but it could set them up to go 1-4 during their first road trip of the season.

It's early enough that one could argue that the 1-4 record wouldn't mean all that much in the long run. For a team that's had to go through the Play-In Tournament in each of the past two seasons, however, every game that should be won needs to be a victory.

It's an unrealistic standard, of course, but that doesn't mean the Lakers should hold themselves to a lower expectation.

Defeating Detroit would bring Los Angeles' season record to 5-2 and give it a chance to go into Memphis with momentum on its side. A loss would result in the Lakers going to Memphis having lost three of its past four games—with the potentially healthy Philadelphia 76ers next on the schedule.

No loss in November will end the Lakers' season, but setting the tone early that they will handle their business against lesser opponents could be the difference between the Play-In Tournament and the Playoffs.