The Los Angeles Lakers face the Warriors on Tuesday night and that means Kobe Bryant, D'Angelo Russell, Julius Randle and company will get the chance to give undefeated Golden State its first loss of the season. Bryant said that he has seen "stranger things" before, while head coach Byron Scott said his team is confident coming into the matchup.
The Warriors are 15-0 this season and look like the best team in the NBA, while the Lakers have just two wins and sit near the bottom of the standings. The Warriors have had a couple close calls this season, but they have not lost a game yet and now the Lakers will get the chance to try and knock them off. Bryant was asked about the Warriors and whether the Lakers could be the team that gives them their first loss and the star responded that he has "seen stranger things happen" and that LA could "play like gangbusters up there. You never know."
The Lakers have not played well this season and they come into the game at 2-11 and the team is rated near the bottom of the league in both offense and defense. According to Yahoo Sports, the Warriors are 17-point favorites against Los Angeles and if things cut right for the team, it could be another major blowout. The Warriors have put up some big offensive performances this season, including a massive win over the Grizzlies early on and the matchup with LA could be more of the same.
According to Mark Medina at the Los Angeles Daily News, Bryant did not practice on Monday and he sat out of shoot around on Tuesday, but he is still expected to play against the Warriors on Tuesday night. Bryant has struggled this season overall, shooting just 33 percent from the field while averaging 16 points per game and now he goes up against one of the top defensive teams in the league in the Warriors.
D'Angelo Russell comes in looking to improve after some early season struggles and according to Medina, head coach Byron Scott expects to play the point guard around 30-35 minutes per game. Russell has been benched late in games at times and Scott said that the rookie needs to "earn" his minutes. Russell is averaging 10 points per game this season with 2.9 assists, but over his last three games he has been improving, averaging 14 points, 6.0 rebounds and 3.3 assists.
Julius Randle has been dealing with a toe injury, but he was able to play on Sunday and he is in line to play against the Warriors on Tuesday night. Randle had 13 points and 13 rebounds against the Blazers and he has been playing well this season after missing nearly all of last year with a leg injury, averaging 11.2 points and 8.8 rebounds per game. The Warriors come into the game at 15-0 this season and they are currently 8-0 at home, 7-0 on the road and 11-0 against teams in the west while averaging 114.5 points per game.
