It’s early days, but the Los Angeles Lakers have the best record in the NBA in the 2026-27 season at 11-2. The Lakers have surpassed expectations so far, but Kendrick Perkins explained on his Road Trippin’ Show why he still doesn’t believe they’re title contenders.
“I don’t believe that they’re title contenders yet because they haven’t got a real signature win yet,” Perkins said. “… They haven’t beat a OKC although OKC is injured. They haven’t beat a Houston Rockets team or the Spurs… Or the Knicks or something like that. Detroit, yeah, no Jalen Duren also… I need a real signature win-type moment.”
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The best teams the Lakers have beaten so far are the 8-3 Detroit Pistons and the 8-3 Portland Trail Blazers. Perkins mentioned the Pistons were without Jalen Duren when they lost 121-116 on Sunday, but Luka Doncic was out with a back injury as well. It was a great victory, but perhaps not a statement/signaute win.
The Lakers will get an opportunity to make a statement later this month, as they take on the 10-2 San Antonio Spurs at Frost Bank Center on Nov.27. If they take down the reigning Western Conference champions on the road, Perkins might change how he sees them. Co-host Richard Jefferson might not, though.
“Perk you right [about the Lakers not being contenders],” Jefferson said. “… San Antonio, I think universally across the board [better]. I think OKC, universally across the board from just kind of even GMs across the line, would be like, ‘Hey, these are the two teams that we’re kind of looking at to be top of the West if healthy.'”
The Spurs and the Oklahoma City Thunder were seen as the clear-cut two best teams in the Western Conference coming into this season. The Thunder’s stock has dropped a bit due to injuries, but they’ll still likely be a force come the playoffs.
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Have the Lakers shown they are at a level where they can take down these juggernauts? Well, they have a lot of firepower offensively.
The Lakers’ 121.6 offensive rating is the best in the NBA. Doncic is the biggest reason for that, as he is averaging 38.6 points, 7.5 rebounds, 7.6 assists, 2.0 steals, and 0.7 blocks per game in 2026-27. The Slovenian has been simply phenomenal and is the MVP frontrunner.
Austin Reaves has also been a solid second option behind Doncic, but he looks set for a spell on the sidelines due to a heel injury. The Lakers might struggle a bit as a result, but they’ll be fine offensively in the long run.
It is on the defensive end, though, where there are question marks. The Lakers’ 113.6 defensive rating ranks 18th in the NBA. Only one championship-winning team in the 2020s wasn’t in the top 10 for defensive rating: the 2022-23 Denver Nuggets, who finished 15th.
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You ideally should be in the top 10 in both offense and defense if you want to win a championship. The Lakers have been better defensively than many believed coming into this season, but further improvement is needed if they are to go toe-to-toe with the likes of the Spurs in the playoffs.
The Lakers won’t be thinking about the postseason right now, though. Their focus will be on their next game against the Phoenix Suns at Mortgage Matchup Center on Sunday at 4 p.m. ET.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: Sports.yahoo.com
