Will the Lakers defend their title

Not likely.

Atai is not as effective in the team as Ariza and cannot fit into this team. It means that other teams have strengthened, especially the Lakers' enemies, Celtic, Cavaliers, Magic, Nuggets...

The main reason is that Kobe Bryant is too poisonous, the Lakers win if he feels good, and the Lakers lose if he feels bad, like today against the Mavericks. Most of the time he's just throwing around.

I don't think the Lakers are going to defend their title, as you can see from today's game!

Today the Mavericks (1-1) won for the first time. "The Hacker" Sean Marion had a good performance, scoring 18 points and six rebounds, Dirk Nowitzki had 21 points and 10 rebounds, and Jason Terry came off the bench with 16 points and Juan Barria with 12 points.

The Lakers (1-1) were a bit listless, with Kobe Bryant scoring 20 points and six rebounds on just 6-of-19 shooting and Andrew Bynum having 14 points and 10 rebounds. It was Shannon Brown who came off the bench to put in an eye-catching performance, scoring 12 points, but it was difficult to change the big picture.

The surprise loss to the Wizards in the first game is still an away game today, and it is against the mighty Lakers, but the Mavericks' morale is high and they are unrelenting from the beginning.

Halfway through the first quarter, Dampier hit two straight shots, then he grabbed a rebound, Kidd had two assists in a row, and Marion scored twice to give the Mavericks a 13-9 lead. Lakers big man Kobe Bryant had a mediocre performance, scoring only twice under the basket in the first quarter and missing the other two jumpers. The Lakers didn't dominate the quarter, trailing 21-24.

Brown became the wonder man on the court, and when the Mavericks had a tendency to pull the score away in the second quarter, he always returned the favor. With 7:20 left in the quarter, he hit back-to-back three-pointers with 35 seconds left to tie the score at 33-33. Terry also hit a three-pointer before Brown hit another jumper from close range.

He scored 10 points in the quarter alone, but the rest of the Lakers struggled and trailed 45-52 at halftime.

Bryant still couldn't find his groove in the third quarter, hitting the basket four times in the quarter, scoring only once, missing both shots from the outside, and even missing the only free throw, and he scored just 2 points on 1-of-6 shooting in the quarter. The Mavericks couldn't have missed such a great opportunity, and Nowitzki scored back-to-back games to start the quarter on a 6-0 run and open up a 58-45 deficit.

The Lakers managed to close the gap to 10 points, but Nowitzki immediately returned with a three-pointer, and then Kobe Bryant was whistled for a technical foul, Nowitzki hit a free throw, and then Dampier scored with a dunk. The Mavericks' morale was high, and Terry hit a three-pointer after that, scoring nine straight points to take a 19-point lead at 73-54. The Mavericks' advantage reached 22 points at one point and they led 78-60 into the final quarter.

Bryant drew three fouls from the Mavericks soon after the start of the fourth quarter, and they went on a 6-0 run to close the gap to 12 points. However, Kidd had two more assists in a row, Marion made three consecutive shots, and the Mavericks took an 18-point advantage at 86-68. The Lakers have had several good opportunities to close the gap since then, but they have failed to capitalize on it, this game is not for them, and the defending champions' first loss of the new season came a little early.

If you fight like this today, it will definitely be no fun.

The Lakers are still strong this season, they are very likely to defend their title, and the main players of the team are currently in hot form.

The Lakers have continued their strong run this season and currently sit in No. 1 in the West.

The Lakers' roster has also been adjusted in the new season, with reinforcements in all positions, and the performance in the game is also very stable, and the team's current record is relatively high in the Western ranking.

The Lakers' roster depth this season is still strong, and the atmosphere in the team is good, with two superstars James and Davis, and Gasol Jr. and Harrell. It can be said that the defense of the title is promising.

Yes, the intensity is still there, the lineup is good, any team will lose, and the other strong teams in the league, the Clippers and the Nets, will also be normal.

The Lakers are still having an excellent record this season and are likely to defend their title.