Los Angeles Lakers @ Charlotte Hornets Preview
The Los Angeles Lakers (25-18) start their annual Grammy road trip in Charlotte as they take on the Hornets (12-30). The Lakers have won four of their last six games and are looking to keep their hot streak alive. Los Angeles is coming off a 118-108 win on the road against the Golden State Warriors.
Even though the Hornets currently sit at 14th in the Eastern Conference, the Lakers cannot take this game lightly, as Charlotte has also won four of their last six games.
The Lakers will be without Rui Hachimura and Gabe Vincent tonight. With Hachimura out, Dorian Finney-Smith will start his second straight game.
Also, look for Shake Milton to get some backup guard minutes tonight with Vincent out. Jarred Vanderbilt returned for the Lakers against Golden State and contributed right away. He is still on a minutes restriction, but he will be asked to guard LaMelo Ball in his limited action.
The Lakers are trying to become a defensive team, per Buha.#LakeShow
“The Lakers are trying to lean into a new defensive identity after the Finney-Smith trade. With the way the roster was previously set up, a long, athletic, switchable group was asking too much of certain… pic.twitter.com/Sbnx8r7rNr
— 🎗NBA•Fan🎗 (@Klutch_23) January 26, 2025
Shutting Down LaMelo Ball
The Lakers’ defense has gotten a huge boost with Vanderbilt’s return. Anthony Davis, Max Christie, Vincent, Finney-Smith, and Vanderbilt are all elite defenders who can guard multiple positions. With an elite-level player like Ball, the Lakers will have to game plan ways to limit his productivity.
Christie will most likely be tasked with guarding Ball to begin the game. He has had a career revival under coach JJ Redick, as he is averaging career highs across the board on offense and defense. He is averaging about one steal per game and gets tons of deflections.
Ball is in the middle of an all-star season. He is averaging 28.9 points per game and 7.5 assists. Look for Christie to take on the tough assignment tonight.
The Lakers look to get their 6th win in 7 games tonight as the six-game road trip continues in Charlotte 🙏 pic.twitter.com/ECJP471NLZ
— Lakers All Day Everyday (@LADEig) January 27, 2025
Lakers Key PLayers To Watch
Austin Reaves has been orchestrating the offense since the D’Angelo Russell trade. He is having a great season, averaging 18.4 points and 6.1 assists.
Reaves and LeBron James have great chemistry on the floor together, and James fully trusts Reaves to facilitate the offense. Reaves will look to continue his great season tonight.
Anthony Davis is coming off a great performance against the Warriors, where he finished with 36 points and 13 rebounds. He will go up against Mark Williams, who has been great for the Hornets this season. Davis will try to get the Lakers their fourth straight win tonight.
The Opponents
The Hornets are a young team looking to upset the heavily favored Lakers tonight. Miles Bridges, Ball, and Williams have had good seasons and the Lakers should not take this game lightly.
This game is very similar to the road game in Dallas, where the Lakers lost to the Mavericks. The Mavericks were without Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving.
The Hornets and Lakers are set to tip off tonight at 4 p.m. Pacific time, 7 p.m. Eastern time.
