NEW YORK — It can be easy to forget, with the franchise’s blockbuster trade for Luka Doncic overshadowing everything else that’s happened over the weekend around the organization and the NBA as a whole.
But before the Lakers made one of the biggest, and most surprising, trades in NBA history, they were trending in a positive direction.
They’ve won six of their last seven games and eight in their last 10. Their 128-112 win over the New York Knicks on Saturday at Madison Square Garden – without Anthony Davis, who they traded to the Dallas Mavericks as part of the deal for Doncic along with Max Christie – was one of their most impressive victories of the season.
They were starting to turn a corner.
It was evident in their 28-19 record as they have inched closer to having a neutral net differential, but it was also evident in their play over the last weeks.
The Lakers were looking like a team that could make noise once the playoffs rolled around. Their game-plan discipline and execution were improving. The defense, which ranked No. 4 since Dec. 8, appeared to make a legitimate turnaround from the early-season struggles. And the offense had shown life after a drought in late November through late December.
But now, the complexion of the Lakers’ season and foundation has been shaken, with the franchise set to usher in a new era led by Doncic.
Although the 25-year-old five-time All-Star isn’t expected to be available for Tuesday’s matchup against the Clippers at Intuit Dome, the end of the Lakers’ “Grammy” road trip that they’re currently 4-1 on and their first game since acquiring Doncic, his presence will still be felt on Tuesday.
The Lakers announced on Monday that they will introduce Doncic at a news conference at 9 a.m. on Tuesday alongside general manager Rob Pelinka.
The availability should offer insight into when Doncic, who has been sidelined since suffering a strained left calf on Dec. 25, will make his Lakers debut.
Long-time NBA reporter Marc Stein reported that Doncic was targeting a return to the court for Dallas’ Feb. 8 game against the Houston Rockets, but it remains to be seen if that reported timeframe will remain the same now that Doncic is a Laker.
ESPN and Andscape senior NBA writer Marc Spears reported on ESPN’s “NBA Today” that Doncic is targeting a return for next week before the All-Star break: the Feb. 10 home game vs. the Utah Jazz or the Feb. 12 road game against the Jazz in Salt Lake City.
Tuesday will also be the first time a member of the Lakers has publicly spoken with reporters since the trade was made, providing the opportunity for greater insight into the franchise’s perspective of the trade, and how it came about.
Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison, who credited Pelinka with rumors of the trade not getting out before the deal was finalized, spoke with reporters on Sunday after the trade was officially made earlier in the day.
“We definitely understand the magnitude of what just transpired. It’s not lost on us. We would like to thank Luka for his brilliance,” Harrison said.
There will also be media availability with Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris, who the Lakers also acquired in the trade that became official on Sunday, later in the morning. Kleber has also been sidelined after fracturing his right foot in the Mavericks’ loss to the Boston Celtics on Jan. 25.
In the backdrop of the aftermath of the Lakers’ hectic last couple of days will be the second “Battle of L.A.” of the season after the Clippers won the first matchup, 116-102, on Jan. 19 in the Lakers’ first visit at Intuit Dome.
Even though they won’t fully look like it on Tuesday, the Lakers will be a much different team, with the results of their most recent trade being felt far beyond Tuesday night’s result.
LAKERS AT CLIPPERS
When: Tuesday, 7 p.m.
Where: Intuit Dome
TV/radio: TNT/710 AM, 570 AM
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