If what the majority of NBA GMs predicted in the annual survey comes true, the Los Angeles Lakers will have to fight their way through the play-in tournament to get to the first round of the playoffs. Based on how the rest of the conference shook out, the Lakers came in at No. 7, one spot removed from securing an automatic playoff berth.
Los Angeles didn't receive any votes for first or second place, but received seven percent of the votes for a third-place finish, and another seven percent for a fourth-place finish.
The Thunder (1), Nuggets (2), Rockets (3), Timberwolves (4), Warriors (5), and Clippers (6) finished above the Lakers. The Mavericks (8) and Spurs (9) were right behind them.
If that happens to be the way the conference shakes out (it's impossible to know), guess who LA would face in the first round if it makes it past the play-in as the No. 7 seed? Denver.
The West will be an absolute battle to the end, so beyond it being in the Lakers' best interest not to face the Nuggets in the first round, it'd be a letdown if they didn't finish in the top half. It's Luka Dončić's first full season in Los Angeles, and it could be LeBron James' last.
The Lakers didn't make splashy moves like the Nuggets and Rockets did this offseason, but fans still hope they'll finish higher than seventh.
Lakers can prove a lot of people wrong this season
Los Angeles has a few new moving parts that it's trying to mesh together. The impact that Deandre Ayton and Marcus Smart will make is a major question mark, considering how their past couple of seasons in the league went. Ayton is the most important between the two, as he's the starting center.
The Lakers may not have the talent and depth that teams like the Thunder, Nuggets, and Rockets have, but that doesn't mean they should be discounted. An 82-game season is long, and anything can happen. Remember the trade that boosted LA's title chances last season? The Lakers will probably never make another trade like that again, but they could make a move before the 2026 deadline.
All of this is to say that Los Angeles can absolutely finish in the top six, at the least. The biggest thing is that they'll need to stay healthy for the majority of the season. Hopefully, those outcomes won't be too much to ask.