The Los Angeles Lakers faced their first big test against the East's No. 3 team on Thursday and passed. They they faced their second big test against the East's No. 2 team and did not pass.
In much-hyped rivalry games against the defending champion Bostons Celtics, the Lakers got overwhelmed by a team that looked a lot more ready for LeBron James and Luka Donu010diu0107 than they were for Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. The two teams played evenly until the start of the third quarter, when Boston built up a 21-point lead in about seven minutes.