NEW ORLEANS — The Los Angeles Lakers’ playoff path quickly became the topic of discussion in their locker room after their 124-108 regular-season finale win over the New Orleans Pelicans.
The conversation naturally trended toward Denver, with the realization that if the Lakers win Tuesday’s rematch with the Pelicans in the No. 7 versus No. 8 game Tuesday, they’ll be the No. 7 seed and play the defending champion No. 2 Denver Nuggets in the first round.
No West team wants to play the Nuggets, who remain the favorite to come out of the Western Conference. Denver went 12-3 against the West in the playoffs last season, including sweeping the Lakers in the Western Conference finals. The Nuggets have also won eight consecutive games against the Lakers across the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons, dominating them in crunch time. They have the consensus best player in the world in Nikola Jokić, arguably the best lineup in the league and an unsolvable two-man game between Jokić and Jamal Murray.
At the same time, no team wants to play a single-elimination game, even at home, when an injury, foul trouble or hot shooting night from an opponent could spell the end of your season. The Lakers are a combined 1-7 against the No. 9 Sacramento Kings and No. 10 Golden State Warriors this season — though LeBron James and Anthony Davis each missed at least one of the three losses against the Warriors. The Kings are now without injured guards Malik Monk and Kevin Huerter, which makes them more beatable. But they still have De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis, who have both given the Lakers fits for years. The Warriors have Stephen Curry, still one of the best offensive forces in the world, and a championship core that has rounded into form over the second half of the season.
There is no easy path for the Lakers to repeat last season’s postseason success or advance even further. Not in this deep of a Western Conference. Not when a disastrous 3-10 stretch from December through January ultimately made them a Play-In team. Not when it took more than 50 games for them to find the proper starting lineup. Not when they’ve had this many injuries to key members of their supporting cast. The road forward will be challenging without home-court advantage from the No. 7 or No. 8 spot, assuming, of course, the Lakers even make the playoffs.
But this is exactly why earning a spot in the No. 7 versus No. 8 game with Sunday’s result presents a win-win scenario for the purple and gold. The Lakers don’t have to pick the postseason scenario they prefer. Both outcomes have upsides and downsides. All the Lakers can control is showing up against the Pelicans on Tuesday, playing their best game possible and letting the proverbial chips fall where they may.
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The upside of beating New Orleans is obvious. If the Lakers win, they’re in the playoffs. Once in the postseason, anything can happen.
Los Angeles has been preparing for the Denver rematch for nearly a year. While the results in the regular season were the same, with Denver going 3-0 head-to-head, the Lakers at least looked more comfortable offensively against the Nuggets in the games in February and March. That doesn’t matter much if wins don’t materialize in a series, but it’s a sign the Lakers could push the Nuggets more than they have the past two seasons.
“Obviously we won’t see them again this (regular) season, but it’s a good game to learn from,” head coach Darvin Ham said after the Lakers’ 124-114 loss to the Nuggets on March 2. “At some point, we’ll overcome what we’re going through with this team.”
Perhaps the Lakers’ improved offense and 3-point shooting put them over the top. Their new starting lineup, which has faced Denver’s starters just once this season, could make a difference. Maybe the Nuggets suffer an injury or a…
This article was originally published by a theathletic.com . Read the Original article here. .