Kristaps Porziņģis and the Boston Celtics saw their four-game winning streak get snapped by the Detroit Pistons. The Celtics were on a back-to-back and were up against arguably the hottest team in the NBA.

Though Luka Dončić’s fourth-quarter explosion showed he is capable of keeping the Lakers in big games, LeBron James’ fourth-quarter groin injury will loom large after this loss, which snapped Los Angeles’ eight-game win streak. With 6:44 left in the game, James called for a timeout and eventually headed to the locker room with a left groin strain.

As we head down the homestretch of the NBA season, Lakers-Celtics is once again one of the league's marquee matchups.

The Lakers had more turnovers than field goals in the third quarter as the Celtics rolled to an 87-67 lead. Jayson Tatum has 32 points with 5 3-pointers, 8 rebounds and 8 assists, and Jaylen Brown has 22 points and 6 rebounds.

Every NBA team has 20 or so games left in its regular season. Some will use that time to position themselves for a potential postseason run. Others are likely to turn their attention toward the offseason. What does success look like over the next five weeks? What should each team’s goal be during that span? The Athletic NBA staff breaks it down.

The Celtics will look to avenge their January 23 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers when the two teams meet Saturday night at TD Garden. That 117-96 defeat came against a different-looking Lakers squad — one that featured Anthony Davis but did not yet have Luka Doncic, who was acquired in a blockbuster trade on February 2.