Lakers Vs. Hornets: Kobe Bryant, Chris Paul Square Off

On the other end, the Lakers’ excellent shot defense will likely pose serious problems for New Orleans, whose offense goes through long spells of inefficiency. Paul will need to be a major scoring threat for the Hornets to threaten on a game-by-game basis, and that could allow the Lakers to offer special attention his way.

All data from Basketball-Reference.com. Check out our Lakers vs. Hornets hub.

The Lakers should easily beat the Hornets ... and that could be a problem. We all know the Lakers’ propensity for playing down to the level of their competition. Last year, they were able to avoid that problem because they got a major test from Oklahoma City. That series woke the Lakers up and allowed them to maintain the right intensity going forward. The Hornets, though, don’t provide the same kind of threat. Can the Lakers get their game in order despite that? If not, it’s a bad sign for the future.

As for the Hornets, we all know the Chris Paul watch will be ongoing once they inevitably lose this series.