They’re already thinking green

The Lakers’ annual holiday party took place Saturday, which seemed like a festive enough time to discuss a particular game looming in the distance.

The Lakers have six more games until the Boston Celtics arrive on Christmas Day, but questions are already being asked about the NBA Finals rematch.

The Celtics (22-2) have won 14 consecutive games and the Lakers (19-3) have had a ragged couple of weeks, complete with road losses to Indiana and Sacramento and uninspiring victories over Phoenix and Washington.

After starting out among the leaders in practically every defensive category, the Lakers slipped to 15th in points given up (97.9 a game) after a 112-103 victory over Sacramento on Friday night.

In fact, Coach Phil Jackson recently told them they weren’t measuring up to the defense-minded Celtics, saying he gave a “warning sign” to players that they weren’t good enough yet to “match that effort that they saw last spring.”

The Celtics won their 17th NBA championship after beating the Lakers in Game 6, 131-92, the second-largest margin of victory in Finals history.

Jackson also said Saturday that the Lakers’ defense “isn’t up to the standards that we have in front of us.”

The Celtics are second in the league in points given up (90.5 a game) and the Lakers are still trying to regain the defensive composure they showed the first month of the season.

“It’s pretty obvious,” Jackson said. “I just told the team that of the 14 points [Sacramento] started with [Friday] night, 10 of those points came off layups. That’s a pretty obvious sign that defensively we still have a lot of work to do.”

The Lakers will see for themselves if their defense holds against the Celtics, though a quick peek at the schedule isn’t favorable.

Starting Friday, they’ll play four road games in five nights before returning from New Orleans in the early-morning hours Dec. 24. They’ll probably practice that day because the game against the Celtics starts at 2 p.m., which will not allow for a traditional game-day shoot-around in the late morning at the team’s El Segundo training facility.

The Celtics, meanwhile, will be coming off a three-game homestand that ends Dec. 23 against Philadelphia.

Jackson was already wondering aloud about the Lakers’ chances to adequately study the Celtics.

“We get back at 2 o’clock or 3 o’clock in the morning, and to have practice on the 24th is almost unfair after four games in five days,” he said. “Preparing for the game is even difficult for us. Obviously, we have something to draw from last June, but that’s . . . six months out.”

It’s over

It was dramatic, and it finally put away Sacramento.

The play that sprung Kobe Bryant for a two-handed dunk started when the Kings’ John Salmons was erased at the top of the key by Pau Gasol’s pick. Bryant then emphatically beat Francisco Garcia and Mikki Moore to the basket with 1:36 to play.

“I rarely have the opportunity because normally when I am going through the paint, I’m going through traffic,” Bryant said. “I don’t really have the chance to use two hands -- you’ve got to use one hand and try and turn your body on another -- so it feels good to kind of have one just to blow it all out.”

--

mike.bresnahan@latimes.com

--

Lakers tonight

VS. MINNESOTA

Time: 6:30.

On the air: TV: Fox Sports West; Radio: 570, 1330.

Where: Staples Center.

Records: Lakers 19-3, Timberwolves 4-18.

Record vs. Timberwolves (2007-08): 3-0.

Update: The Timberwolves are on an eight-game losing streak and are 0-3 since team executive Kevin McHale became their coach after firing Randy Wittman. Minnesota rookie Kevin Love, who left UCLA after one season, is averaging 9.1 points and 7.9 rebounds in 24.3 minutes a game.

-- Mike Bresnahan