Lakers Can No Longer Avoid Play-In Tournament This Season

The Los Angeles Lakers season has been an incredibly frustrating series of ups and downs. The inconsistency that has been on the floor has caused them to underperform in the standings and now will have massive implications on their potential in the postseason.

Los Angeles has been locked into the play-in tournament, although where they will land still remains up for grabs. The team is currently the 9th seed in the Western Conference, but are only 0.5 games back of the 8th seed. Grabbing the 8th seed is a massive difference for the Lakers, as they would then be given at least two chances to reach the postseason.

At a minimum, staying in the 9th seed is ideal for the Lakers. They would be given a home game for the 9th/10th matchup, for the right to play the loser of the 7th/8th matchup on the road. Having to win two games to even make the postseason is tough, but the Lakers have only themselves to blame.

Injuries did take their toll on Los Angeles, but the team dropped multiple must-win games to teams directly ahead of them in the standings. It has hurt their chances to make a run, but they still believe in themselves fully.

This is essentially the same team that reached the Western Conference Finals last season, so they believe they can make another deep playoff run. If they can't, big changes will likely be coming to the organization this summer.

For now, the Lakers will need to focus on winning their final two games. They have matchups against the Memphis Grizzlies and New Orleans Pelicans on the road, giving them a prime opportunity to end the season on a high note. All the Lakers can do is control their own games and just hope that at least one team ahead of them loses some games, so they can move up in the seeding.