:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/54034429/usa_today_9787604.0.jpg)
The Los Angeles Lakers toss on their Sunday whites and host the Memphis Grizzlies Sunday afternoon. The Lakers are wrapping up a weekend back-to-back at STAPLES Center, losing to the Clippers Saturday in their first of two matinee tip offs.
Brandon Ingram was back in the starting lineup, impressing with a solid 18-point effort. He attacked the rim, used his skill set and had his shooting stroke going as he picked the Clippers apart. Ingram’s return performance was one of the few high points of the otherwise mundane loss to the Clippers.
The Grizzlies will be without Marc Gasol, who’s missed the previous four games with a left foot strain. Memphis, barring a catastrophic finish to the season, is all but locked into the seventh-seed. They could still overtake the Oklahoma City Thunder, but the Grizz survived a season plagued by injuries.
Just barely.
The Lakers, on the other hand, have barely managed to escape franchise-worst territory with six games left in the season. They need to win just one game to beat the 2014-2015 Lakers’ 21-61 record, which isn’t saying much about either outfit. You remember the good ole days with Wesley Johnson and Carlos Boozer.
Surely we all want the Lakers to beat out that lousy record, a bitter 82 games swept under the rug by the 17 wins the team gathered last season, but that one win could be costly. The Phoenix Suns are on an 11-game losing streak, are only a half-game back in the “tank” standings and a single win could be enough to swing a nine percent difference in the Lakers’ odds of keeping their top-three protected pick.
No Gasol, no Chandler Parsons, and a Lakers team that beat the Grizzlies the last time these two teams met. Toss in a back-to-back for the purple and gold and it’s Sunday funday, indeed. Enjoy the game!
Time: 12: 30 p.m. PT
TV: Spectrum SportsNet