The Lakers (18-36) will continue their Grammy trip as they face the Detriot Pistons at 4:30 PST on Spectrum Sports Net. The Lakers dropped their first meeting against the Pistons back in January, 102-97.
The Lakers shocked a lot of people on Monday by benching Luol Deng and Timofey Mozgov in favor of Brandon Ingram and Tarik Black. The lineup change proved to be positive as the Lakers blew up the Knicks 121-107. It would be interesting to see if the Lakers continue to play their new lineup. On Monday, Mozgov received a DNP-Coaches Decision.
It might be worth to keep an eye out on Mozgov if Luke Walton decides to play him against the Pistons. The Pistons have a dominant rebounder in Andre Drummond. Drummond is a rebounding monster and could prove to be a challenge for the Lakers’ centers. He is currently averaging 14.6 points and 13.7 rebounds.
Tarik Black played a decent game in his new starting role. Black scored 9 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in only 20 minutes against the Knicks, but finished the game with a +/- of +34. Black’s accession to the starting up could signal the Lakers’ interest to showcase him to other teams before the tradeline.
The Lakers played extremely well with their new lineup and rotations. They played much younger and quicker. It seemed that as their playoff chances are dwindling down, the Lakers are more willing to play their youth more.
The Pistons (24-28) are currently in a tight playoff race in the Eastern conference. Momentarily, they are in the 8th seed. The Lakers have not won two games in a row since early January. They will look to accomplish that feat tonight.
