The Mavericks, once a dominant force in the West, now find themselves mired in a slump, with four consecutive losses leaving a bitter taste in their mouths and forcing them to swallow the bitter fruit of a declining ranking. And it all stems from a 134-122 defeat at the hands of the Eastern powerhouse, the Cleveland Cavaliers. This match was not just a simple victory or defeat; it was more akin to a minor earthquake in the Western landscape, shaking the fate of every team. Without Doncic and Irving, the Mavericks' offense resembled a sports car that had lost its engine, possessing a flashy exterior but unable to unleash its true speed. Dinwiddie, once a formidable player, now found his touch icy cold, repeatedly missing shots as if lamenting his inner helplessness. The role players fought hard, but lacking the core's coordination, their efforts were like scattered pearls, unable to be strung together into a shining necklace. In contrast, the Cavaliers operated like a precision machine, with each part perfectly fitting and functioning in its role. Mobley, the young rising star in the frontcourt, displayed astonishing dominance in the game, with his scoring, rebounding, and shot-blocking akin to a sharp dagger repeatedly piercing through the Mavericks' defense. The backcourt duo of Mitchell and Garland showed great chemistry, their passing, driving, and shooting like a smooth symphony that kept the Mavericks' defense on the run. Even the bench players LeVert and Niang did not disappoint, with their scoring contributions like timely rain nourishing the Cavaliers' flowers of victory. The Mavericks' loss…

The Lakers defeated the Hawks at home with a score of 119-102, and James set a new record by scoring over 30 points for the 563rd time in his career, surpassing Jordan to become the all-time leader. Notably, James has been in great form recently after some rest. In the past six games, he has averaged an impressive 30.3 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 8.3 assists per game, despite being 40 years old. Most of these performances have come against strong opponents, such as scoring 32 points against the Kings, 31 against the Warriors, 38 against the Blazers, and 30 in today's game, with the Lakers winning all of these matches. The only game in the last six where James did not score 30 points and the Lakers lost was against the Cavaliers, where he had 23 points, 4 rebounds, and 7 assists. The Lakers managed to hold their own against the league-leading Cavaliers for three quarters but could not maintain it in the final quarter. Over the past period, the Cavaliers and Celtics have demonstrated that they are in a class of their own by playing against Western Conference teams. While the West has many strong teams and more playoff contenders than the East, the East is stronger in terms of overall strength. The West is evenly strong, while the East has three particularly formidable teams at the top. The good news is that the Lakers have shown improvement this season, with a current record of 20 wins and 14 losses, compared to 17 wins and 17 losses at the…

The Lakers have won another game, defeating the Eastern powerhouse Hawks at home with a score of 119-102. Notably, LeBron James scored another 30 points today, bringing his career total to 563 games with 30+ points, surpassing Jordan to become the top scorer in history. The Lakers also have more good news as they have returned to fourth place in the West. After defeating the Hawks, their record stands at 20 wins and 14 losses. This is due to the Nuggets and Mavericks both losing their games today, allowing the Lakers to quickly climb up the ranks. The Lakers have had a rollercoaster season. Initially, the Lakers' record was at the top four level in the West, matching the Warriors and Suns with a strong start. However, all three teams began to falter, with the Lakers even dropping out of the play-in tournament area at one point. Now, the Lakers have finally made a comeback, and it's clear that acquiring Smith has significantly increased the defensive depth on the wing. In his debut with the Lakers against the Cavaliers, Smith went 1 for 4, not yet adapting to the team, but his defense still impressed the Lakers. Against the Trail Blazers, Smith had a 1 for 6 shooting rate, which had nothing to do with the opponent and was purely due to not yet adapting to the Lakers. Today, Smith found his rhythm, scoring 8 points and grabbing 5 rebounds in 23 minutes off the bench, going 3 for 5 from the field and 2 for 3 from beyond the…

On January 4th, Beijing time, the Lakers played against the Hawks at home. The game ended with the Lakers successfully defeating the Hawks 119-102. It was not easy for the Lakers to win this game, as there were a large number of turnovers in the game. The Lakers had 18 turnovers in total, but this time the Hawks only scored 14 points from turnovers. Therefore, the Lakers did not lose too many points in this regard. Moreover, in this game, the Hawks' three-point shooting was poor (6 out of 34), so the Hawks had an extremely difficult game. After the Lakers won the game, they rose to fourth place in the Western Conference, while the Hawks dropped to seventh place in the Eastern Conference after losing. In this game, we can also see that the Lakers have made significant progress. This season, the Lakers' defense has been poor at times, but now they have defensive continuity. So when the Lakers' offense is not going well, they can stabilize the situation on the court through defense. At the same time, the Lakers often suffered in rebounds during this season, but in this game, the Lakers had a significant advantage in rebounds, grabbing 56 rebounds in total, while the Hawks only grabbed 39 rebounds. The Lakers also grabbed 17 offensive rebounds in the game, giving them more offensive opportunities. Although some people felt sorry for the Lakers sending Russell away, it seems that the Lakers made the right choice from now on. After all, Russell's defensive flaws are too obvious, and Smith's…

NBA regular season focus match, Lakers vs. Hawks! The Lakers are playing back-to-back games, with Davis returning and James and Eyebrow joining forces to lead the team, determined to defend their home court and continue their winning streak. The Lakers are in good form now, with their star players performing well, so there should be no problem winning if they play normally. The Hawks are seventh in the East, with a record similar to the Lakers. If the team wants to beat the Lakers, the performance of the perimeter is key, as it will be difficult to limit the opponent defensively, and they can only rely on offense. Starting lineup: Lakers: Reeves, Christie, Hachimura, James, Davis; Hawks: Trae Young, Daniels, Jaylen Johnson, Lissach, Capela. Trae Young started with an iron shot, Davis shot and grabbed himself, Reeves counterattacked fast, Trae Young free throw, Lissach ate the cake, Daniels stole and scored a one-dragon, the Hawks made a 6-0 comeback. Hachimura alley-oop, Daniels three-pointer, Reeves shot short, Daniels leaned back, Davis attacked the basket, James fast break, Hachimura ate the cake, the Lakers made another 6-0 lead again. Jalen scored two points, and then nothing else, Davis dunked fiercely, James ate the cake, Hachimura hit a three-pointer, and the Lakers made another 8-0 to expand their lead. Okongwu broke the scoring drought, Reeves stopped and jumped, Bogdan hit a three-pointer, Reddish answered the ball, Okongwu dunked fiercely, Milton free throw, Okongwu supplemented the dunk, James connected with Davis, Trae Young hit a super long three-pointer, Jackson counterattacked and scored three points,…

On January 4th, Beijing time, the NBA regular season continues to burn with passion, bringing us a match between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Atlanta Hawks. The Lakers, as a team that has won 17 championships, have introduced several new players this season, aiming to break out of the Western Conference. Prior to the game, they ranked 6th in the West with a record of 19 wins and 14 losses, narrowly defeating the Trail Blazers at home in their last game without Anthony Davis. The Hawks, as an emerging force, have had ups and downs this season. They were 7th in the East with an 18-16 record before the game, suffering a 19-point defeat to the Nuggets in their last away game, desperately needing a victory to boost morale. This is a clash between powerhouses from the East and West, with the Lakers led by LeBron James and Anthony Davis, and the Hawks by Trae Young and Dejounte Murray. Who will emerge victorious? Let's wait and see. In the end, after four quarters of intense competition, the Lakers defeated the Hawks 119-102 at home. Player ratings: two perfect scores, six passing grades, and two struggling! As a team with a rich heritage, the Lakers' performance this season has seen both highs and lows, which is closely related to the aging of star players like LeBron James and other starters. To achieve their seasonal goals, the team brought in new players like Milton and Finney-Smith, but their recent performances have not been satisfactory, falling short of expectations. On one hand,…

The Lakers defeated the Hawks 119-102 and have now climbed to fourth place in the Western Conference. LeBron James scored over 30 points more times than Michael Jordan, making him the first in history. In the game, he played for 30 minutes, made 13 out of 20 shots, including 2 out of 5 three-pointers, scoring 30 points, 3 rebounds, and 8 assists. After the game, James finally regained his confidence, saying that he still has fuel in the tank and will continue playing without mentioning retirement again. Interestingly, at the beginning of this year when the Lakers were facing difficulties, James had talked about retiring. At that time, James was extremely exhausted because he felt responsible for his words. He had put himself in a difficult situation by saying that he would play all 82 regular-season games, including back-to-back matches. As a result of this statement, even when tired, James felt embarrassed to take a break. Eventually, he became cautious and was later criticized by J.J. Redick. In an interview, Redick directly stated that it wasn't good news for the Lakers if James played all 82 games. Redick also believed that an exhausted James could not help his teammates on the court. Ultimately, James was forced to rest by the Lakers, and after one game where Davis led the team to victory, James was still somewhat dissatisfied, saying that he wanted to play but the Lakers did not allow it. Looking back now, Redick's criticism seems to have been effective. Since Christmas, after resting, James' physical energy has recovered, averaging…

Butler is 1000% unwilling to play for the Heat anymore and is doing everything he can to get the team to trade him away. As the saying goes, "A forced melon is not sweet." With no intention of continuing to play for the Heat, Butler has been performing poorly on the court, scoring only 9 points in each of his last two games. Although the Heat previously stated that they would not trade Butler, they could not resist his proactive application for a trade. Yes, Butler has done it; he has formally submitted a trade request to the Heat, and the relationship between the two sides has completely deteriorated. This time, Butler did not specify a destination team; he is willing to go to any team except the Heat, confident that he can make himself and his new team competitive anywhere. However, there is still an old problem: it's not that teams are unwilling to take over, but rather that the goddess only wants to have fun and then leave. All teams in the league have been notified that Butler will decline his player option worth $52.41 million next season and enter the free market. This means that the team trading for Butler from the Heat this season may only have half a year of his services... Many people may be curious as to why the Heat do not proactively trade Butler, at least to recover some assets for themselves; do they love him that much? Salary expert Marks explained that if the Heat insist on keeping Butler until his…

Foreign media's latest prediction is that before the trade deadline, both the Lakers and the Clippers will make significant trades. The Lakers are expected to acquire Trail Blazers forward Grant, while the Clippers are expected to get Jazz guard Sexton. Los Angeles Clippers receive: Collin Sexton, Patty Mills Utah Jazz receive: Forward PJ Tucker, Center Cody Zeller, Forward Kobe Brown, Grizzlies' 2026 second-round pick (protected pick 31-42 from ATL), Clippers' 2030 second-round pick, Clippers' 2031 second-round pick The Utah Jazz will open up for trades before the trade deadline, with Jordan Clarkson and Collin Sexton both being included in trade negotiations. Sexton is an important backcourt player for the Jazz, and his price is not high, which is just right for the Clippers who don't have much to offer. The Clippers can't trade their first-round pick until 2030, and now they only have two second-round picks in 2030 and 2031. Los Angeles Lakers receive: Forward Jerami Grant, Forward/Center Duane Washington Jr. Portland Trail Blazers receive: Vincent, Rui Hachimura, Lakers' 2025 second-round pick After recently acquiring Finney-Smith, the Lakers really need to pursue Grant. In today's league, there can never be too many versatile wing players, and Grant is one of them. Grant is in his third season with the Blazers, and his usage rate has significantly dropped. He is no longer the Blazers' top scorer, making it a good time for the Lakers to acquire him. Grant has always been a valuable asset during the Blazers' rebuilding period, and they sacrificed their 2025 first-round pick to trade for him from…

The recent trade moves by the Lakers have shaken up the entire league. Starting with Russell's trade to the Nets in exchange for Finney-Smith and Milton, the Lakers' trade story has become increasingly interesting. Now, they have set their sights on Valanciunas from the Wizards, making things even more exciting. This time, the Lakers' trade actions seem unconventional. They first sent Russell away in exchange for two practical players, an operation that caught many fans off guard. In recent games, Finney-Smith and Milton's performances have indeed brought new vitality to the team, especially their contributions on the defensive end have made the coaching staff very satisfied. The Lakers' management's move is actually quite interesting. They did not immediately pursue big-name stars but instead focused on solidifying the team's overall strength. The team's atmosphere is now significantly better than before. The two new players have gelled well with their teammates, making the Lakers' rotation lineup more flexible. However, the Lakers are clearly not content to stop here. They are brewing a bigger trade, this time targeting Valanciunas of the Wizards. The Wizards are also interested in this trade, but they require at least one first-round draft pick, which caused the negotiations to stall temporarily. The Lakers' management seems to place great importance on Valanciunas. Even though the negotiations were temporarily put on hold, they did not give up on continuing communication. Recent news indicates that both sides have resumed contact, suggesting that the Lakers are really keen on finalizing this trade. Vincent's recent performance has indeed been eye-catching. He has been…