Kobe Bryant took a break from his farewell tour to scold his younger teammates after yet another blowout loss. We’ll find out if what the Lakers’ legend had to say was actually heard by his mates when they take the court for the first time since an 18-point loss to Portland.
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LOOK AHEAD
It’s just the midway point in the NBA season, but the Mavericks need to start playing with a sense of urgency. A trip to Los Angeles for a contest with the Lakers would be a good place to start. Dallas’ three-games-in-four-nights road trip got off to a wicked start with a 115-104 loss to the Rockets on Sunday. With a trip to Golden State on tap Wednesday, this game likely separates the Mavericks from a winless trip. The sixth-place Mavs are only a game ahead of the Rockets in the Western conference standings. The seven seed would get the honor of opening the playoffs against either the Spurs or Warriors. A win over the conference-worst Lakers would keep Dallas out of that spot for at least one more day.
Kobe Bryant has been pretty chill for the Lakers this season. The team is young, and bad, and he knows it. But, he still has his limits, and he appears to have reached it Saturday. When the team’s GM says the season is about Kobe, the youngsters probably feel they can get away with anything. And that was the case until Bryant reportedly got fed up with losing and directed some pointed comments to his teammates following the Lakers’ 121-103 loss in Portland. He called out rookie D’Angelo Russell and second-year forward Julius Randle by name. Their focus and dedication have been called into question repeatedly by coach Byron Scott, and this is another indication of their approach.
INJURIES
Backup point guard Devin Harris left Sunday’s game with a toe injury and did not return. He played only 10 minutes before leaving the floor. His absence is crucial to the Mavs’ rotation, but it’s not a complete loss. J.J. Barea and Raymond Felton have seen an increase in playing time and both play well off the ball and while running the offense. Also, center Zaza Pachulia missed the last game and is questionable to play against the Lakers with a lower right leg injury. Salah Mejri started against the Rockets scoring 10 points with 11 rebounds and three blocks in just over 29 minutes.
The Lakers will likely be without power forward Larry Nance Jr. for a fifth consecutive game as he continues to recuperate from a sore right knee. Julius Randle was inserted back into the starting lineup during his absence.
KEY MATCHUP
Mavericks forward Chandler Parsons continued his sizzling streak Sunday, scoring a season-high 31 points on 10 of 15 shooting, including 5 of 6 from three-point range. Parsons, who struggled for most of the first two months of the season while coming back from hybrid microfracture surgery on his right knee, is playing as well as he ever has offensively. In the past three games, he’s averaged 29 points on 60.1 percent shooting – including 12 of 18 on threes – while putting together his three highest-scoring games of the season. The Lakers have had a tough time defending anyone this season. They’ve given up at least 108 points in every game of their current six-game losing streak and surrender 106.5 points per game for the season.
ANALYSIS AND ODDS PREDICTION
With a game against the Warriors up next, the Mavericks really need this one against the lowly Lakers. And the way Parsons is scoring the basketball there’s no reason why they shouldn’t get it. Parsons is playing the best offensively he has all season, a good sign that he may be completely recovered from the surgery during the offseason, and another option for coach Rick Carlisle to go along with Dirk, Wesley Matthews and Deron Williams. In fact, Parsons has turned into the first option. We’ve seen both teams struggle defensively and that gives the over some value in this game. The Lakers can’t stop anybody and the Mavs had Nowitzki and Barea screaming at each other during a breakdown in their loss to Houston. The teams played twice during the first two weeks of the season with Dallas winning and covering both times. The games played below the total, but both teams have improved a bit offensively since then.
Dallas 110, Los Angeles 101
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