After winning five of their last six games, the Los Angeles Lakers lessened their chances of keeping their protected top-three pick in this year's draft. From a 56 percent probability, it went down to 49 percent as they finished the season with the third-worst record in the league, a rank higher than what they were on pace before the last two weeks of the regular season.

That said, general manager Rob Pelinka admitted, via Baxter Holmes of ESPN, that the team is aware of the situation and that they already have a plan in place should the lottery balls on May 16 do not go in their favor.

“Listen, I think you have to be prepared for whatever scenario when you're looking at a random event like the lottery. People are asking, ‘Do you guys have to have to that pick?' That's something that I get asked at every single game. I think we're prepared to have it, and we also have a plan if we don't.”

“I think for us, if we get the lottery balls to bounce our way, yes, we have a great attack-plan for the draft. But if we don't, just like [many famous] sports moments, we have to find a way, and we do have a plan, to still get to where our ultimate destination is without the draft pick.”

The 47-year-old added that they are hoping they can keep their pick and not lose it to the Philadelphia 76ers, especially with a deep pool of talented players expected to declare for the draft. If they ever have the opportunity to select early, they do have options available that the Lakers will weigh on once they know the order of picking.

“So we're already in a position of strength. And then if that top-three ping-pong ball enters our way, we have a number of contingencies of how that can play out.”

“And if it doesn't, then again, we have our fallback position of a first-round pick already, and then we would have our pick in 2018. I think I had said to someone the other day the destination of getting to a championship might be like a Rubik's Cube. You're looking at this thing and it's got all these different colors and you've got to get them to all line up. There's 1,000 different ways to turn the cube and to get it so it all lines up, but you're going to eventually do. Maybe you have the pick; maybe you don't.”

“But you have to continue to make moves and turn it until you have that complete perfect picture, and that's what we're doing every day, and that's what we're analyzing and looking at.”

With their core still intact and having gained valuable experience this season, the addition of their next young prospect will definitely help them in speeding up their rebuilding process. If the Lakers also decide to deal the pick, they can even get a star in return and make them contend for at least the playoffs immediately.