The Los Angeles Lakers have had a stark reality check this season. They have gone from favorites for the NBA Championship, to title contenders to playoff hopefuls. And now they sit at 11th in the Western Conference, 2 games adrift of the San Antonio Spurs in 10th place and the Play-In spots.
The Lakers’ immediate rivals for the final 2 Play-In spots are the Spurs and the New Orleans Pelicans. How do the schedules of the 3 teams match up? And what are the chances that the Lakers make it into the Play-In tournament?
Los Angeles Lakers
Schedule: Suns (A), Warriors (A), Thunder (H), Nuggets (A)
Strength of schedule: .580
The Lakers have the 5th toughest remaining schedule in the NBA. They face 3 teams with a winning percentage higher than .500. The league leaders, the Phoenix Suns and Western Conference powerhouses, the Golden State Warriors, and the Denver Nuggets. They also have an easier game against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
But the Thunder are no pushovers as they just beat the Suns in a huge upset victory. And on form, the Lakers are worse off than the Thunder who have won more games than them over the last 10 matchups. The Lakers will find it difficult to even eke out a single win out of their remaining schedule and it would be an optimistic final push from them. That may or may not materialize.
San Antonio Spurs
Schedule: Nuggets (A), Timberwolves (A), Warriors (H), Mavericks (A)
Strength of schedule: .604
The good news for the Lakers is that their closest rivals, the Spurs, have an even tougher schedule ahead of them. Facing the Warriors and the Mavericks, who have already clinched a playoff spot and are jockeying for 3rd seed. They also face MVP frontrunner, Nikola Jokic and his Nuggets who have won 4 of their last 5 games and risen to the 5th seed.
The Spurs have it tougher than the Lakers and even a single win will mean a lot to their Play-In hopes. The good news is the Spurs look as dangerous as anyone in the league, having won 7 of their last 10. Keldon Johnson has averaged 22.8 points and 6.2 rebounds in his last 5 games. And the Spurs will be banking on Dejounte Murray returning to bolster their tail-end charge.
New Orleans Pelicans
Schedule: Kings (A), Trail Blazers (H), Grizzlies (A), Warriors (H)
Strength of schedule: .513
The Pelicans did themselves a huge favor by beating the Lakers and not only widening the gap between them and the dropoff but also denting a rival’s record. Looking forward, they have 2 relatively easy games before closing out their season against the 2nd and 3rd seed, the Grizzlies, and the Warriors.
The Pelicans have quietly found their groove with CJ McCollum settling into the team. They also have 3 games between them and the Lakers, which means 2 wins from their remaining 4 fixtures should guarantee them a Play-In spot.
It looks extremely bleak for the Los Angeles Lakers and their season is verging on failure if it isn’t a failure already. The absence of LeBron James for this final stretch of games will be damning and the team will need to rise to the occasion, contrary to what they have done all season.
Whereas the Pelicans are set to make their first Play-In appearance. Likewise, the Spurs will give it their all to make their season count for more and return to past glory.