3 Problems Lakers must fix to win 2024 NBA title

Don't discount importance of seeding

We are all aware of how seeding works in the NBA Play-In at this point. At the end of the regular season, teams in the seven-eight range only need to win one game to secure their playoff spot, while teams in the nine-ten range have to win two in order to beat out a team above them.

Of course, plenty of NBA players will tell you they do not care about the way the seeds wind up at the end of the regular season. The mentality from a lot of guys in the league is "if we make it into the field, we believe we can beat anyone."

You can count LeBron James as one of those players. He told media after LA's win over Philadelphia that the team is not focused on seeding. While not worrying too much about the future and instead focusing on the present can be a good thing, it seems he and the Lakers are simply not taking their situation seriously enough.

The team has to avoid being in the nine-ten range at all costs. For one, the numbers massively favor a team in the seven-eight range in terms of securing a playoff spot. But also, putting this Lakers team in back-to-back "win or go home" scenarios would be a recipe for disaster.