After a home win and a few days off, the Lakers are back on the road, taking on the Wolves.
It's back on the road for the Lakers as their time in Los Angeles featured just one game and some much-needed rest. With the Lakers out of the in-season tournament, the NBA has scheduled them to play the Wolves and Grizzlies during NBA Cup week with the trip to Minnesota up first.
Who: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Minnesota Timberwolves
When: 5:00 p.m. PT, Dec 13
Where: Target Center
Watch: Spectrum SportsNet
The road has not been kind to the purple and gold. Their recent four-game road trip resulted in just one victory. Even rookie Dalton Knecht mentioned how time away from Los Angeles negatively impacted the team.
They ended their losing streak by winning 107-98 against the Blazers, but Friday's game presents a much bigger challenge. Minnesota has far more talent and star power than Portland. Anthony Edwards leads the way as he is averaging a career-high 26.4 points along with 5.4 assists per game.
Containing elite guards has been a challenge for the Lakers. With Austin Reaves listed as questionable for the game, the Lakers will need players like Max Christie, Cam Reddish and Knecht to step up defensively and slow Edwards down as much as possible.
The Wolves frontcourt hasn't been as dominant as they imagined when they traded for Julius Randle. Last season, after 23 games, they were 18-5 with Karl Anthony-Towns compared to this season, where they sit at 12-11 in the same amount of games played.
However, pairing him with Rudy Gobert still makes for a big, physical team. With recent injury updates indicating no Christian Wood or Jaxson Hayes anytime soon, Anthony Davis will have a lot on his plate Friday, scoring over Gobert and keeping him off the glass.
AD struggled to do this during their previous matchup with the Wolves. The Lakers lost 109-80 he ended the night with just 12 points on 4-14 shooting.
AD's play will be even more critical with LeBron James already ruled out. L.A. will need him to bring an MVP-level performance to be able to keep up with Minny's offensive firepower.
Given the number of players out and another tough game on the road, it'd be understandable if the Lakers cannot win on Friday. However, to be a threat in the West, they'll eventually have to start beating good teams.
Currently, the Lakers are 5-10 against teams at or above .500. That won't cut it in a tough Western Conference, where 10 of the 14 teams are above .500. Hopefully, Friday will be that sixth win.
You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88.
