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The LA Lakers will embark on their first trip of the 2021-22 NBA season when they face the San Antonio Spurs at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas, on Tuesday. The Lakers are coming off a narrow 121-118 win against the Grizzlies, while the Spurs suffered back-to-back defeats after losing to defending champions Milwaukee Bucks 121-111.
The Lakers were able to get off the mark after suffering an embarrassing defeat to the Phoenix Suns. Carmelo Anthony showed up with a huge performance, scoring 28 points off the bench on a historic night and surpass Moses Malone to claim the ninth spot on the NBA all-time scorers list. Melo single-handedly outscored the Memphis bench himself, helping his team get a much-needed victory.
The San Antonio Spurs, meanwhile, lost steam during the fourth quarter after staying neck and neck for much of the game in their loss against defending champions Milwaukee Bucks. Doug McDermott was huge for the Spurs, scoring 25 points and shooting 63.6% from the perimeter on 11 attempts.
Match Details
Fixture: LA Lakers vs San Antonio Spurs | NBA season 2021-22.
Date & Time: Tuesday, October 26th; 8:30 PM EST (Wednesday, October 27th; 6:00 AM IST).
Venue: AT&T Center, San Antonio, TX.
LA Lakers Preview
The LA Lakers bounced back after a miserable start to the season with a hard-earned victory against the Memphis Grizzlies. There were impressive performances from Carmelo Anthony, Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook on the night.
The Lakers were up during the first half, but let the Grizzlies back in after a poor third quarter that saw them getting outscored 34-25. The Lakers managed to rally behind a huge effort from Melo and AD, hitting a couple of big-shots and icing their free-throws to register the first win of the campaign.
There were plenty of positives to take, such as Westbrook's game-high 13 assists and AD's four blocks, fewer turnovers and better defense compared to their previous game. However, the Lakers still managed to leak 62 points in the paint and were out-rebounded.
If they were to face a dominant center like Joel Embiid, Bam Adebayo or Nikola Jokic, it's going to be extremely difficult considering how weak their interior defense is at the moment. However, the win was a much-needed confidence booster for the Lakers to build on.
Key Player - Anthony Davis
Anthony Davis has been in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons of late, be it a kerfuffle with teammate Dwight Howard or the Lakers' miserable start to the season. AD himself has had a pretty decent start in terms of scoring despite not playing at an elite level yet.
Davis took steps in the right direction with a dominant performance against the Memphis Grizzlies. He showed yet again why he is one of the most dominant defenders in the league, producing four blocks on the night. He will look to shore up a leaky Lakers' interior defense that once again failed to shut a team down in the paint. He is one of the few players in the league who takes immense pride in dominating at that end.
Davis will look to make a statement against the Spurs. With San Antonio lacking a strong interior presence, it's going to be extremely difficult for them to stop a fully engaged AD. This is the perfect opportunity for Davis to send a message to the rest of the league as he looks to dominate from the jump.
LA Lakers Predicted Lineup
G - Russell Westbrook; G - Kent Bazemore; F - LeBron James; F - Anthony Davis; C - DeAndre Jordan.
San Antonio Spurs Preview
The San Antonio Spurs suffered consecutive defeats after losing 121-111 to the defending champions Milwaukee Bucks. The Spurs were neck and neck with the Bucks for most of the game before they lost steam in the fourth quarter, getting outscored 36-30.
In the Spurs' defense, they are a young, inexperienced roster coming off a brutal back-to-back with a game on the road against the Denver Nuggets and at home against the Bucks. That hardly left them any time to recover. However, they managed to put up a fight, largely thanks to huge efforts from Doug McDermott, Keldon Johnson and Lonnie Walker.
A huge reason for their loss was their inability to convert from the perimeter. The Spurs shot a dismal 25.6% from the three-point territory compared to the Bucks' 42.9%, which was a huge factor in turning the tide. If they had converted better, we might have been reading a different story.
McDermott was the only exception, shooting an astonishing 63.6% from the perimeter on 11 attempts, San Antonio will hope he continues more of the same.
Key Player - Dejounte Murray
Dejounte Murray was expected to take a huge leap prior to the start of the 2021-22 season. He is seen as a focal point and a bedrock of the franchise in the future, but the young guard has had a slow start to his campaign.
Murray scored ten points, grabbed nine rebounds and dished out seven assists along with one steal. None of these stats jump out from the board despite him having a decent outing. Murray will have to be more aggressive for him to fulfill the expectations placed on him.
He will have the ideal opportunity to make a statement against a Lakers team that is struggling with their defense, making the right plays by being more aggressive. Murray is also one of the best defenders in the point-guard position. So he will have a huge task on his hand, guarding the likes of Russell Westbrook.
San Antonio Spurs Predicted Lineup
G - Dejounte Murray; G - Derrick White; F - Doug McDermott; F - Keldon Johnson; C - Jakob Poeltl.
Lakers vs Spurs Match Prediction
The LA Lakers will have a chance to build on their win against the Grizzlies by putting up a dominant display against the Spurs. With the Spurs lacking solid interior defense, expect the likes of Anthony Davis, DeAndre Jordan and Dwight Howard to feast in the paint as they look to regain their confidence and mojo. The LA Lakers look like they are set for a comfortable victory.
Where to watch Lakers vs Spurs?
The LA Lakers vs San Antonio Spurs game will be streamed live on NBA League Pass. Meanwhile, the local fans can watch the game on Bally Sports Southwest- San Antonio and Spectrum SportsNet.
Guess the Lakers players!
