Lake Show Life
Fansided

The Los Angeles Lakers should be happy to be in play-in tournament

By Jason Reed

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - MAY 11: LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts to play behind Anthony Davis #3 during the third quarter against the New York Knicks at Staples Center on May 11, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - MAY 11: LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts to play behind Anthony Davis #3 during the third quarter against the New York Knicks at Staples Center on May 11, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Los Angeles Lakers are currently slated to be in the play-in tournament prior to the NBA Playoffs. The Lakers are the seventh seed in the Western Conference with a one-game deficit behind the Dallas Mavericks and Portland Trail Blazers.

Both teams have the regular-season tiebreaker over the Lakers so the Lakers are essentially two games behind both teams. Each team only has two more games. The Lakers have to win both, either Dallas or Portland has to lose both.

Portland is 9-1 in its last 10 with a five-game winning streak while Dallas is 8-2 in its last 10. Chances are it probably won’t happen, although it is not impossible. Portland does have two tough opponents in the Phoenix Suns and Denver Nuggets.

The Los Angeles Lakers are practically guaranteed to be in the play-in tournament, and quite frankly, that is a great thing. While some Lake Show Life contributors hate the idea and the team won’t get the same time to rest as the other teams, it is better in the long run for LA.

I already wrote by the play-in could be a blessing in disguise and now I am doubling down. It’s not that the play-in could be a blessing in disguise; it is undoubtedly better for the Los Angeles Lakers.

Why it is better for the Los Angeles Lakers to be in the play-in tournament:

Four words: the Los Angeles Clippers. I know, I know, this is a Lakers site and I am about to say something positive about the Clippers. Go ahead and call me a closet Clippers fan in the comment. It isn’t true, but it would not be the first time.

The Clippers are the second-best team in the Western Conference (behind a healthy Los Angeles Lakers team), in my opinion. While it would be hilarious to beat the Clippers in the first round, I also do not want to see the Lakers having to face the Clippers that early when it is quite clear that LeBron James and Anthony Davis need some time to ramp up.

You know what gives them time to ramp up and get into game speed? The play-in tournament. An extra game (or two) to play for something that truly matters. Then, assuming the Lakers beat the Warriors, they would head into a series with a team that matches up terribly against the Lakers: the Phoenix Suns.

Get past the Suns and then you have the Clippers with a series and an extra playoff game under their belt. Sounds like the start of a potential championship run for the purple and gold.

If the Lakers lose the first game they face another team they match up really well against, the Utah Jazz, and then get a beat-up Nuggets team or a Mavericks/Blazers team in round two. Series win.

The drawback of the Lakers playing in the play-in tournament is simple; the team could have two ugly games and not make the playoffs.

Well here is a news flash for everyone that is worried about that: if the Los Angeles Lakers lose both play-in games then they were not going to make a run for the championship anyway. If the Lakers lose both of those games then we can safely assume that they would drop the first two games against the Los Angeles Clippers as the sixth seed.

And if a team is banged-up enough to lose two games against two mediocre teams then they probably are too banged-up to come back from a 2-0 series deficit against the second-best team in the conference. Just an idea.

Plus it is the ultimate scapegoat. The Los Angeles Lakers were banged up and had to play in this tournament that has never existed in a full season before. If only they got to simply start the playoffs against the Suns, then they would have made a run! (again, if they lose the play-in games, this simply is not true.)

Next. 50 greatest Lakers of all-time. dark

It is most likely going to happen and it is time to embrace it. The Los Angeles Lakers are better off playing in the play-in tournament.

Home/Lakers News