The Los Angeles Lakers coaching staff and front office have repeatedly said that wins and losses are unimportant this season, but that is untrue, and they know it. It is their way of tempering expectations, but losing begets losing, and after three long seasons where the team did little other than lose, it is critical that the new generation of players begins to learn what it feels like to win. It is better to win ugly than lose and take solace because the squad played pretty well.
The Lakers played their first preseason game Tuesday night, and they won.