Welcome to the first edition of the GAME ON newsletter for Happening in DTLA. We’ll discuss current events involving our teams from the City of Angels.
The Lakers (21-7) returned to Staples Center after a successful road trip that saw them gain victories over the rival Celtics and Hawks from Atlanta after dropping back to back games to the Cavs and Pistons. The defending champs reeled off a 7-game winning streak including back to back wins over a game but undermanned Thunder team and had to overcome a 20-point deficit to earn the win Friday night over the Grizzlies. The Lakers remain in 2nd place in the Western Conference, a game and a half behind the Utah Jazz and half a game ahead of the Clippers. The Lakers hit the road for another trip that saw them fall to the Nuggets on Sunday night, but the loss pales in comparison to the sight of seeing Anthony Davis leave the game with another leg injury. I know my heart sinks every time AD hits the floor, because of his injury history, but fingers crossed that the injury is not serious. Davis is scheduled to undergo an MRI on Monday and the Lakers don’t appear overly concerned. Coach Frank Vogel stated in an interview on ESPN that they believed Davis just tweaked his Achilles and are just being cautious. Something to definitely watch this week as the Lakers continue their road trip with upcoming games against Minnesota on Tuesday, then head to Brooklyn to take on the revamped Nets, who many believe will represent the East in the NBA Finals, possibly against the Lakers. They close out the week with a rematch against the defending Eastern Conference champions, the Miami Heat.
The other team from Los Angeles host the Miami Heat tonight at Staples Center and are carrying a 3-game winning streak that saw them prevail over the Cavs, Bulls, and Wolves after producing an ugly loss to the Sacramento Kings last Sunday. The Clippers have a tough week ahead of them as they include consecutive games against the first place Jazz, before closing out the week with a Sunday game against the Brooklyn Nets, who bring with them an abundance of offensive firepower with the recent addition of former MVP James Harden, but who don’t seem very interested in playing any defense.
With just a little over a week since the Super Bowl saw Tom Brady gain his 7th championship, those of us that are already suffering from Football withdrawals were given a reminder that next year’s Super Bowl will be here in Los Angeles at SoFi Stadium. The Rams were scheduled to host the big game this year, but construction fell behind because of the current pandemic and was reassigned to Tampa Bay. Maybe the Rams can be the second consecutive team to play at home in next year’s game with the recent trade for Matt Stafford.
The Chargers with their offensive rookie of the year, quarterback Justin Herbert, and new head coach, Brandon Staley, will have something to say about that.
I saved the best for last!!! I’m thrilled to hear that the Dodgers have resigned Justin Turner to a 2-year deal, with a team option for a 3rd year. Turner was seeking a 3-year deal, but both sides were able to come to an agreement and JT will be back at third base as the reigning champions begin their quest for back to back World Series titles. Los Doyers were also able to complete team friendly deals with future ace Walker Buehler and Austin Barnes. Buehler was resigned to a 2-year, 8 million deal, which seems pretty low for such a valuable piece of the pitching rotation, but you can bet the house his next deal won’t be such a bargain if he continues to evolve into one of the games best pitchers. The addition of Trevor Bauer can only help ease the workload of Buehler, and Dodgers living legend Clayton Kershaw is entering his last year on his current contract and his future is unknown as he contemplates retirement or a return to his home state of Texas. Maybe his childhood buddy Matt Stafford can convince him to hang around La La Land for a few more years.
Please make sure to check out our new Podcast, GAME ON, which appears every Monday at 6:00pm on Instagram Live.
Commentaires