Lakers' playoff hopes get a boost: Three consecutive wins move team up in Western Conference standings
Just 10 days ago, the Lakers sat out their star player Anthony Davis in a tough loss to the Houston Rockets. Their post-season future appeared to be on the edge of a cliff as they sat 10th in the table.
Having played one game more than the New Orleans Pelicans and Utah Jazz, who were 11th and 12th respectively. The team's play-in contention seems to be in jeopardy.
However, they have since played four more games, winning three of them and rising in the standings. For the first time this season, the Lakers are a .500 team, thanks to their recent win against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Davis, who was criticized for sitting out the Rockets game, made a strong comeback in the game against the Dallas Mavericks and put up an impressive performance, scoring 26 points and 10 rebounds. However, they lost the game by just one point (110-111).
It was a surge of hope for the gold and purple outfit, as they have gone on to win three consecutive games against teams like the Orlando Magic, Phoenix Suns, and the Oklahoma City Thunder.
If they can maintain this level of performance and have their injured players like LeBron James and Mo Bamba return to the lineup, it will be a huge boost to their roster, which will take most of the load off of Davis.
Lakers move to .500 🙌
AD and Bron had to show love https://t.co/wwVnYnpByu
Other key players like Austin Reaves, who is having a career season with the Lakers, scoring a career-high 35 points against the Magic, will be pivotal to the teams' success in the post-season.
The Lakers will need to continue to work hard and play consistently to secure their spot in the playoffs.
Western Conference standings shake up
The Lakers can also attribute their improved playoff chances to some losses suffered by other teams in the Western Conference, which saw a recent shake-up, with the most notable change being the Dallas Mavericks.
Just a few days ago, the Mavericks were in a playoff position, but have since dropped to the 11th position outside of the play-in after a loss to the Charlotte Hornets.
It was their seventh loss in ten games, a poor performance for a team that was expected to make a deep run in the playoffs after acquiring Kyrie Irving prior to the trade deadline. The Mavericks need to fix their team quickly if they hope to even secure a play-in spot.
THE LAKERS WIN ✅
THUNDER LOSE ✅
MAVERICKS LOSE ✅
JAZZ LOSE ✅
BLAZERS LOSE ✅
LAKERS GO TO .500 ✅
FIRST TIME IN OVER A YEAR ✅
TIED FOR 7TH ✅
2 GB OF 4TH ✅
MVP ANTHONY DAVIS ✅
LONNIE WALKER BUCKETS ✅
SCHRODER IS TUFF ✅
AND BRON IS BACK SOON 🔥 https://t.co/KLlZEEeaEg
The Phoenix Suns have also fallen to 5th position in the Western Conference after suffering their third consecutive loss to the in-form Sacramento Kings.
The Suns have a 4-6 losing record in their last ten games, and the injury to Kevin Durant is proving to be a major hindrance to the team. The Suns traded key players to get Durant, and his absence is hurting their performance on the court.
The Lakers should be looking to capitalize on the struggles of other teams in the Western Conference and use this to their advantage.
It will be interesting to see how the Western Conference standings evolve as the season progresses, with the Lakers looking to stay ahead of the competition.