As the Lakers embark on their crucial post All-Star stretch, they currently sit in 13th place in the Western Conference standings. Yes that’s right…13th place…and although the playoffs are still within reach, the 2023 Lakers have undoubtedly established themselves as the most talked about 13th place team in NBA history. So let’s keep the conversation going.
The Lakers, although only ahead of Houston and San Antonio in the West, sit only 2 games back of Oklahoma City for a play-in spot, and remarkably only 3.5 games back of Dallas for an outright playoff spot.
The deficit is surely not insurmountable, the question is can they leapfrog all of those teams ahead of them? We will find out quite early as the Lakers first five games coming out of the break are: vs GSW, @DAL, @MEM, @OKC and vs MIN. Talk about no rest for the weary…although the term “must-win game” is vastly overused, one can’t help but look at all of these remaining Western conference games for the Lakers as must wins.
Although the schedule presents the Lakers with a pressure packed situation coming out of the gates, it also give them an opportunity to make quick moves in the standings should they be able to reel off some wins. The irony of this all is that should the Lakers somehow find a way into the playoffs, will it then be easier for them to win a series than it was just to get in? The roster definitely has some positives with the recent influx of talent and 3-point shooting, combined with the ‘addition by subtraction’ of Russ jumping ship, but it still all comes down to LeBron and AD.
Is LeBron ready to move past the “All-time scoring leader hangover”? How bad is his foot issue? Which AD are we going to get? Are we going to see more of Street Clothes Davis or Bubble Davis? Many questions loom but one thing is for certain, we will be watching this Hollywood ending with genuine curiosity.