CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- In the NBA equivalent of the teacher telling the class, "Pencils down," because test time is over, the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Charlotte Hornets 124-118 on Monday to improve to 27-25 and now will wait to see what happens to their team leading up to Thursday's trade deadline.
The victory assured L.A. a successful 4-2 road trip and extended its win streak to three -- the longest the Lakers have strung together since winning four straight in early December, culminating in winning the in-season tournament championship in Las Vegas.
While wins over quality opponents such as the Boston Celtics and New York Knicks were encouraging, and even the Hornets win showed some temerity to stave off a late run by a young ballclub playing with no pressure, Lakers vice president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka was "stuck on calls" all day, a team source told ESPN, discussing potential deals.