The Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics make up the most iconic East-West rivalry in the NBA. And as part of NBA Rivalry Week, the two sides are facing off in their first matchup of the season with both teams looking to stay on the right track after some difficult recent play.
The Lakers have won only three of their last seven games and are 5-5 in their last 10. The recent stretch opened a conversation about L.A.’s difficulty beating some of the league’s stronger teams. Three of their five losses were against teams currently in the top six of their conference and the other two were against teams in the same Western Conference crowd as them.
Meanwhile, the Celtics are 5-4 in their last nine, a pedestrian record for a team 18 games above .500 and at the second seed in the Eastern Conference. Three of those losses were by double digits, and one of their wins was Wednesday night, when they needed overtime to defeat an L.A. Clippers team missing both James Harden and Kawhi Leonard.
But Boston is fully healthy on Thursday night, something that couldn’t be said of some of their previous games. Kristaps Porzingis, Jrue Holiday and Al Horford all missed Wednesday night against the Clippers in order to be healthy for the Lakers matchup.
At their best, the Celtics are easily one of the best teams in basketball, evidenced by their 2024 NBA championship. They shoot and make 3-pointers at a historic rate, averaging six attempts and two makes more per game than any other team in the league.
The Lakers defense — already stretched thin on the perimeter as constructed and even worse without Jarred Vanderbilt — may struggle to defend the 3 against a team that is prolific at it. But the Celtics are dangerous because of what they do on defense as well.
Boston ranks third on offense and fifth on defense, in part because of the versatility they have at all positions. They are led by two elite two-way wings in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, guards Derrick White and Jrue Holiday can guard 3-4 positions each, and their bigs stretch the floor on both ends of the court.
These are the types of games where LeBron James’ commentary on their margin for error become apparent. For L.A. to beat Boston, they might need to play perfect basketball.
It starts with LeBron and Anthony Davis being at their best. Austin Reaves also needs to facilitate and stay within himself on both ends of the floor if his shot isn’t falling while Dorian Finney-Smith, Gabe Vincent and Max Christie need to lead the charge defensively on the perimeter.
All of this is within the Lakers’ capability, but so far this season, it hasn’t come against the best of the best. Thursday night is a chance for L.A. to begin changing the narrative.
Los Angeles Lakers (23-18) vs. Boston Celtics (31-13)
Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025, 7:00 p.m. PT
Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, California
TV: TNT
Radio: 710 AM ESPN LA
Projected Lakers Starting Lineup:
PG: Austin Reaves
SG: Max Christie
SF: Rui Hachimura
PF: LeBron James
C: Anthony Davis
Key Reserves: Dorian Finney-Smith, Jaxson Hayes, Dalton Knecht, Gabe Vincent
Projected Celtics Starting Lineup:
PG: Jrue Holiday
SG: Derrick White
SF: Jayson Tatum
PF: Jaylen Brown
C: Kristaps Porzingis
Key Reserves: Payton Pritchard, Al Horford, Luke Kornet, Sam Hauser
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