LOS ANGELES – – – The Los Angeles Lakers are the classic playground bullies of the NBA. They beat up the little guys but struggle when it comes to “bullying people their own size.”
Los Angeles continued its dominance against the NBA’s last-place team on Friday night, beating the lowly Indiana Pacers 128-117 behind Luka Doncic’s 44 points.
advertise
Los Angeles (39-25) has now won five of its past six games. Defeat every team with 31 or fewer wins so far this season. So far this season, the Lakers are 26-7 against teams below .500.
“Nights like this can change the trajectory of a team and a player,” guard Marcus Smart said. “So hopefully this win, and the way we won it tonight, will give us a confidence boost.”
For much of the year, Los Angeles found a way to beat the teams “they were supposed to beat.” It’s still a concern when they face the NBA’s elite teams.
As of March 2026, the Lakers have struggled against the NBA’s top opponents, with a record of 6-13 against the league’s top 10 teams. Los Angeles is 14-19 this season against teams with a .500 record or better, one of the worst records among the Western Conference’s top six seeds.
advertise
Playing against the league’s best teams, the Lakers have clearly struggled with a minus-12.9 net rating against the NBA’s top 10 teams, according to Clean The Glass.
Coming up are games against the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Chicago Bulls, a rematch against the Denver Nuggets and two back-to-back games against the Houston Rockets. Now is the perfect time for the Lakers to end the season strong.
“It might be a perfect time, it might not be,” Luka Doncic said. “These games have to be approached with the same mentality. Obviously, every team has good players. They are winning games. So we need to take it one game at a time first and then try to win all of these games.”
If the Lakers are getting ready to compete for a championship, they’ll need to prove they can beat the best teams in the league.
advertise
Maybe things started Sunday afternoon, as they beat the New York Knicks 110-97 at home without LeBron James. The Lakers look to be the tougher team and look to prove themselves in this win.
“We played hard, stuck to the game plan and competed,” guard Austin Reeves said. “That’s what it comes down to. I thought we played harder than they did and we set the tone early and played really well in the third quarter.”
In the tough times ahead, Los Angeles will look to improve their league standings and prove to the league and themselves that they are indeed a contender.
