Lakers Begin Back-to-Back vs Blazers

The Lakers welcome the Portland TrailBlazers to the Crypto.com Arena as the Lakers look to bounce back following the New Year’s Eve loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Lakers’ poor shooting was what really hurt them, and Cleveland’s ability to consistently hit shots from the perimeter was too much for the Lakers to overcome.

Jaxson Returns

With the absence of Anthony Davis, who the Lakers are treating cautiously according to coach JJ Redick, Jaxson Hayes will enter the starting lineup. Christian Koloko has provided some good minutes in Hayes’ absence so there’s a chance we see plenty him as well with Davis not playing.

The Lakers have missed the lob threat that Jaxson provides and have been lacking a presence in the paint defensively outside of Anthony Davis. JJ Redick has tried playing Rui Hachimura at the 5 when Davis goes to the bench, but when that happened against Cleveland LA struggled with Cleveland’s front court.

Starting Lineup

Rui Hachimura has provided excellent scoring all season, but with the acquisition of Dorian Finney-Smith and the Lakers losing the bench production of D’Angelo Russell, it makes sense for Hachimura to be moved to the bench to provide extra scoring. Finney-Smith is more of a seamless fit next to LeBron James and Anthony Davis, and with Max Christie the Lakers have a lineup featuring two really good perimeter defenders, alongside Anthony Davis’ monster ability to protect the rim. Redick has said that Finney-Smith will come off the bench at first, but LA may find it best to move Rui to the bench.

Tip off is at 7:30 PM PST as the Lakers start the first leg of a back-to-back.