It was a difficult first half of the season for LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers. They struggled with injuries and roster issues, and limped out of the gate to a 2-10 record. Things didn’t get much better in December, as they closed out 2022 six games under .500 at 15-21.
Anthony Davis has been in and out of the lineup all year, and Russell Westbrook’s experiment clearly wasn’t working in the Lakers’ favor. While they couldn’t land trade-market bigwigs like Kyrie Irving or Kevin Durant, they did make some moves of their own that may turn the team’s fortunes around in the last 25 games of the season.
Can the Los Angeles Lakers make a run in the Western Conference?
It seems to have worked so far, despite the small sample size. Since the trade deadline of February 9, Los Angeles is 4-1, including two wins over the Golden State Warriors, whom they trail in the Western Conference standings. The most impressive performance, however, came Sunday in Dallas, when the Lakers erased a 27-point deficit against Luka Dončić and company, capping the biggest comeback in the NBA so far this season.
The win helped the Lakers keep pace with the other two teams on the outside looking to the playoffs, and they’re tied with the Thunder and Blazers with a .475 winning percentage. They are now one game behind the Pelicans, who are currently the 10th seed, the final entry tournament spot.
So what do the Lakers have to do to make the play-in? And do they have any shot at the sixth seed to solidify their playoff spot? In a typical year, an 11 seed at the end of April would have a hard time moving back up the rankings. But both the Western Conference and the Eastern Conference are such close battles that a five-game winning streak by either team can change the standings.
Who are the teams with which you will fight for the position?
As it stands today, the 29-32 Lakers are just 1.5 games behind the three teams that are tied for the 7th, 8th and 9th seeds, and 2.5 games behind the Mavericks for the sixth seed Idol. While they may have trouble catching the Mavericks or Clippers, there’s a good chance they’ll get past the Timberwolves, Jazz and Pelicans down the stretch, and the Warriors haven’t shown their usual firepower all season.
They have a very favorable calendar in March when it comes to travel. Starting March 3, the Lakers will play 10 of 12 games in Los Angeles, putting a small two-day road trip in between a home stay of more than three weeks. During this stretch, they will have games against teams with whom they will battle for position, including the Mavericks, Pelicans, Suns, and Warriors.
Their fate will undoubtedly be in their own hands as they try to climb the ladder, and it may be one of the last chances for LeBron James to show his dominance at his progressive age.
