Lakers vs. Mavericks Preview and Game Thread: Can Lakers end road trip with a win?

After a frustrating loss against the Rockets, the Lakers look to end their time in Texas with a victory.

After a frustrating loss versus the Rockets on Sunday, the Lakers will try and finish their time in Texas with a win on Tuesday.

If Los Angeles beats Dallas, they’ll end this road trip splitting the pair of games and will remain in front of the Mavericks in the standings.

Start time and TV schedule

Who: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Dallas Mavericks

When: 4:30 p.m. PT, Jan 7

Where: American Airlines Center

Watch: TNT

The Lakers will have to shake off the baffling late-game calls that went against them in Houston and come out with a win versus Dallas. Despite the results not going their way versus the Rockets, they rallied late and demonstrated that they could keep up with one of the best teams in the conference.

As usual, success for the Lakers will come down to how good LeBron James and Anthony Davis play in this game. Dallas has no answers for AD in this game, so he should be as aggressive as possible in this contest. A stat line around 30-plus points and 15-plus rebounds sounds reasonable for the Lakers big.

LeBron has been very sharp to begin 2025, averaging 29.7 points, 6.3 rebounds and 8.3 assists to start the new year. If both potential NBA All-Stars have big games, it’ll be tough for the Kyrie Irving-less Mavs to come out of this game with a win.

Mavericks are dealing with an injury bug

Dallas not having Kyrie or Luka Dončić means L.A. can take advantage and earn a win on the road if they stay sharp. The Mavericks have been struggling recently and have lost four straight games.

Another hurdle for Dallas is trying to win this game on the second night of a back-to-back. On Monday, they’ll be playing a tough Memphis Grizzlies team.

Despite these advantages, the Lakers shouldn’t take the Mavs lightly. Dallas still has a couple of perimeter players who can cause problems.

Former Laker Spencer Dinwiddie is a player who can score in bunches. On Dec. 30, he had a 30-point night for Dallas in a matchup against the Sacramento Kings. With a green light, Klay Thompson is someone who could single-handedly demolish a Lakers perimeter defense that isn’t considered great.

To avoid disaster, the Lakers will need Max Christie and Austin Reaves to step up defensively. Hopefully, this is a game where Dorian Finney-Smith’s impact on the defensive side of the ball shines.

If the stars shine and the role players give an appropriate defensive effort, the Lakers should cruise to victory against the Mavs.

Notes and Updates

• The injury report for the Lakers didn’t have any significant changes. Anthony Davis (left plantar fascitis) and LeBron James (left foot injury management) are probable to play for L.A., while Gabe Vincent (left oblique strain) and Cam Reddish (low back soreness) are listed as questionable.
• Jalen Hood-Schifino (left hamstring strain), Jarred Vanderbilt (right foot surgery recovery) and Christian Wood (left knee surgery recovery) are all out.
• Dallas does not have an injury report out, given that they are playing Memphis the night before. For the Mavs’ matchup versus the Grizzlies, Kyrie Irving (lumbar back sprain), Doncic, Luka (left calf strain) and Dante Exum (right wrist surgery) were all ruled out for the game. Given that their return dates are weeks out, it’s safe to assume all three will be unavailable for Tuesday’s game versus the Lakers.
• We will be live on Playback for this game, so be sure to join us!

You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88.