Los Angeles Lakers: Predicting the December Schedule
By Jon Soden
The Los Angeles Lakers face a tough December schedule. After a hot start, will they be able to keep winning during the month of December?
The Los Angeles Lakers have jumped off to a hot start, silencing the critics with a 17-3 record a quarter of the way through the 2019-20 season. Now, let’s look ahead to the rest of the schedule for December, where the Lakers will hope to close off the year strong.
One piece of criticism the Lakers continued to receive despite the wins was their strength of schedule. The Lakers have played only one team about .500 since November 12, and that game was their recent loss to the Dallas Mavericks. However, the schedule is no fault of the Lakers, and will soon balance out.
Well, December seems to be the month it will balance out. Nine of the remaining thirteen games of December are against playoff teams from last year. Many of them are also NBA powerhouses, including the Denver Nuggets (twice), Milwaukee Bucks, and Los Angeles Clippers.
We will now find out who the Lakers really are; we know they can handle their business against average teams, but can they beat the best? Here is a look at each game remaining in December.
Denver Nuggets (December 3rd)
Prediction: Loss
Yes, the first losing streak for the Lakers. It is bound to happen at some point, and it is better to happen early in the season rather than later. A 17-3 trend is great, but it is simply not going to continue at this pace for the rest of the season.
The Denver Nuggets have gotten very little attention this year, despite having the second-best record in the West last year. They will look to put the league on notice with a statement win against the Lakers.
Utah Jazz (December 4th)
Prediction: Win
This game was probably the hardest to predict, for many reasons. The Jazz have major advantages in that this game will be the second of a back-to-back for the Lakers, and that it will be the middle of the Laker’s road trip. Additionally, the Utah home crowd is one of the best in the league, and gives the Jazz an extra boost.
On the other hand, the Jazz have fallen short of their high expectations so far, and currently have one of the worst offenses in the league. The Jazz are also on a bad stretch of games, coming off multiple losses and their 40-point halftime deficit to the Toronto Raptors. This game could get ugly for both teams, but the Lakers will pull it out in a close one.
Portland Trailblazers (December 6th)
Prediction: Win
A critical component in this game is that Avery Bradley should be back from his injury. This will allow for him and Danny Green to match up against Portland’s star guards, Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum. If those two can be contained, it is hard to see the Trailblazers beating the Lakers.