Lakers at Blazers Preview: 11/28/15

Game breakdown for the Lakers at Blazers on 11/28/15.

After a much needed three-day rest for Thanksgiving, the Trail Blazers host the Lakers on Saturday for the second time in as many weeks. In their last meeting on November 22, Damian Lillard dished out a career high in assists (13) as he led the Blazers to a 107-93 victory in Los Angeles. It should be an exciting game, especially with the return of Meyers Leonard to the lineup after missing the last seven games with a dislocated shoulder.

Current Form

The Blazers almost came back against the Bulls on Tuesday thanks to two double-doubles from Ed Davis and Mason Plumlee. Despite the loss, it was a positive step in the Blazers’ rebuild. The Blazer’s fought back instead of collapsing in the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, the Lakers just handed the Warriors best start in NBA history with a 34-point loss in Oakland and have lost their last four games by an average of 19.5 points. Edge Blazers

Key Matchup

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Bench vs. Bench. We’ve seen strong performances from Davis and Allen Crabbe lately, but otherwise the rest of the Blazers’ bench has been lackluster as of late. Besides Davis, the bench was a combined plus/minus of -20 against the Bulls. That was bad enough for Gerald Henderson to stay after the game and put up shots until midnight. In contrast, the Lakers’ bench has two of the NBA’s streakiest scorers in Lou Williams and Nick Young. Add in the always dangerous Jordan Clarkson and that makes three potential 20-point scorers. Edge Lakers

Coaching

This is a no brainer. Watching Byron Scott continue to play Kobe Bryant, despite his awful play, has to be frustrating to the rest of the team. I understand the pressure of Los Angeles and the city’s unconditional love for all things Kobe, but at some point Scott has to realize that he’s hurting this team more than helping it. He’s now letting Bryant skip practices to rest his legs for games. It seems throwing up airballs and hogging the ball is more important than developing their young talent. Edge Blazers

Stat to Watch

“Lillard-Time.” Despite Lillard’s near triple-double, he lost the Bulls game for the Blazers with his abysmal offensive performance in the fourth quarter. Not only did he shoot 1-10 from the field, he missed a clutch free-throw that would’ve tied the game with 20 seconds left. The Lakers have let a lot of NBA stars run over them recently, with Lillard scoring 30 on them last week. If this game is close in the fourth, look for Lillard to explode. Edge Blazers

Betting Line

I bet that Mike Rice has another wisecrack for the Lakers’ Young after last game’s brilliant, “Everyone knows Nick Young doesn’t play defense, they don’t call him Swaggy D.” Otherwise the Blazers are getting eight points at home (lines via Bovada.lv), which is a testament to the Blazers’ current six-game win streak in the series. Edge Blazers

If the streaky trio (Williams, Clarkson, Bryant) make shots, then the Lakers could make it interesting. However, the Blazers will look to capitalize on Leonard’s return to the lineup and take down the struggling Lakers.

It will be a fun Saturday night in Portland with game time scheduled for 7:00 P.M.