Lakers vs Pistons Preview and Game Thread: It’s time to string some wins

The Lakers look to make it two wins in a row on the road against the Pistons on Monday.

After successfully avoiding a three-game losing skid, the Lakers look to build on their first road win of the season as they take on the Detroit Pistons on Monday. L.A. currently has an active six-game winning streak against the Pistons dating back to 2021.

Start time and TV schedule

Who: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Detroit Pistons

When: 4:30 p.m. PT, Nov 4

Where: Little Caesars Arena

Watch: Spectrum SportsNet

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The Lakers’ most recent victory against the Raptors was the perfect depiction of a tale of two halves. After playing what JJ Redick claimed as their best half of the season where they put up an early season-high of 76 points, Los Angeles followed that up with two putrid quarters that even Anthony Davis wasn’t thrilled about.

AD had every right to feel that way because, frankly speaking, the purple and gold had no business being in a dogfight late in the game versus a Raptors team sans two of their best players in Scottie Barnes and Immanuel Quickley.

Perhaps one can say that the Lakers’ lackluster second half was just a matter of them taking their foot off the gas or failing to protect a huge 26-point lead, but even so, there’s no excuse for giving up 60 points in the paint as well as 25 fast-break points, especially when the whole league has now noticed the team’s early weaknesses to begin the year.

That’s why Monday’s game against the Pistons — who will be on the second night of a back-to-back — would be nice if the Lakers don’t repeat the same mistake. The Pistons, who are coming off a win against the Brooklyn Nets and are now 2-5 in this young season, should be handled easily by the Lakers so that they don’t need to play AD and LeBron James 36 minutes each to win the game.

The Lakers’ overall talent is just better for as respectable of an opponent as Detroit is. But if Los Angeles does its job of containing Cade Cunningham, who is off to a superb start to the season, then they should be alright. This is the perfect game for the Lakers’ defense to get right, step up and find any momentum they can carry on moving forward.

That said, it’ll also be interesting to see how Redick approaches this game. The rookie coach did say he tweaked the rotation against the Raptors.

If Russell, who is listed as questionable for this one with right foot contusion, plays, then let’s see if this tweak continues. Perhaps it’s also one way to get the second unit going, considering that the Lakers currently rank dead last in the league in bench scoring this season. So that’s also a glaring weakness that needs to be worked on as soon as possible.

Hopefully, the Lakers do exactly that because, after all, one of the objectives of the regular season is to find solutions for the team’s current flaws. And it’s better that these holes are appearing now rather than later. It’s always best to learn and correct mistakes while, at the same time, winning these must-win games.

Let’s see if the Lakers can do that against the Pistons on Monday as they look to string three straight wins before heading back to Los Angeles.

Notes and Updates

• For the Lakers’ injury report, Anthony Davis (right hip soreness) is listed as probable. Same goes with Austin Reaves (right ankle sprain), who got hurt against the Raptors but was tough enough to play it out in the second half.
• Russell (right foot contusion) is noted as questionable and this time with a foot injury. He’s also been dealing with lower back soreness to begin the season.
• Then the usuals: Jarred Vanderbilt (right foot injury recovery) and Christian Wood (right knee injury recovery) remain out while Christian Koloko (G League two-way), Jalen Hood-Schifino (G League assignment), Maxwell Lewis (G League assignment), Quincy Olivari (G League two-way) and Armel Traore (G League two-way) will all be on South Bay Lakers duties.
• As for the Pistons, they have yet to issue an update since they’re coming off the first night of a back-to-back. It’s worth noting, though, that Ausar Thompson (reconditioning) and Bobi Klintman (right calf contusion) didn’t play against the Nets.
• We will be live on Playback for this game, so be sure to join us!

You can follow Nicole on Twitter at @nicoleganglani.