Lakers vs. Jazz Game Preview: Off key

The Los Angeles Lakers go from one of the fiercest hostile territories to visit in Portland to another city that’s always made their distaste for the purple and gold heard in Utah. The Lakers are coming off of a failed comeback effort against the Trail Blazers, closing out their three-game road trip with the second-half of back-to-back against the Utah Jazz.

The bright side? The Lakers have four days off following their trip to Salt Lake City, giving them a chance to lick their wounds, regroup in Los Angeles and bide their time while D’Angelo Russell recovers from an assortment of leg bumps, bruises and strains. Entering their break on a high note would be great, but the Lakers have been off key for close to two months now. Expecting it against a team like Utah, firmly in position in the Western Conference playoffs, would be foolish.

Outside of a horrendous third quarter and end-of-game collapse the Lakers were mostly in the game against Portland. Lou Williams has the greenest of green lights with Russell out, so expect plenty of possessions to end off of his shooting. His 31 points wasn’t enough against Portland, so help will have to come from elsewhere. Brandon Ingram went scoreless off the bench, while two starters (Jose Calderon, Timofey Mozgov) did as well. That likely won’t be the case for a second straight night.

Enjoy the last Laker game for a bit, once again with a national audience to captivate.

Time: 7:30 p.m. PT

TV: TNT