The Trail Blazers beat the Lakers 136-129 on October 27, 2026, with Luka Doncic scoring 41 in the loss. Portland's Damian Lillard, Ja Morant and Jrue Holiday carried the scoring, and Donovan Clingan stretched the floor. The discussion has moved to Morant's role: he drew a couple of offensive fouls on Walker Kessler and has been above average defensively off the ball, while only 15 percent of his shots now come in the restricted area, down from 40 percent as a rookie. Los Angeles ranks 22nd in defensive rating but holds a 9.1 net rating and the number two offense, 0.1 behind Portland.