Building off from their historic title run last year, LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers want to imprint their mark as the best defensive team in the league. Shortly after the Lakers used their brand of stifling defense to turn back the Houston Rockets, 120-102 on Sunday, LeBron opened up about LA's biggest goal in their title defense. The answer? Literal defense.

“Our goal is to be a number one defensive team in the league. It's going to take our film session, it's going to take our shootarounds, it's going to take the practice of what we do on the floor and in the games to continue to work on those habits.”

Here's the full clip, per Lakers Daily's Ryan Ward.

Furthermore, The King cited the challenges of becoming more in sync defensively, considering they welcomed five new guys to the rotation this season. Montrezl Harell, Dennis Schroder, Marc Gasol,  and Wesley Matthews were all added in the offseason, while Talen Horton-Tucker has now gotten more meaningful minutes.

RECOMMENDED (Article Continues Below)
LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Tim Duncan.

Spencer See ·

Nuggets Lakers Game 3 Prediction

RB Hayek ·

Lakers Kobe Bryant and Suns Goran Dragic amid 2010 NBA Playoffs clash

Jay Postrado ·

While the Purple and Gold were lauded for their offseason haul, there were some concerns if they can still be a defensive juggernaut after losing rim protectors Dwight Howard and JaVale McGee. Harrell and Gasol are great defenders in their own right but is not as athletic as their predecessors.

But judging by the defensive clinic that the Lakers has put up over the last couple of games, they seem to be doing just fine on that end. LeBron James is still a marvel to watch at both ends, while Anthony Davis still gives opponents trouble with his length and athleticism.