Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James has no plans of missing the playoffs for the second straight year, and so when they officially make it this 2022-23 season, he wants the rest of the NBA to be ready.

Speaking to reporters ahead of the NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, James expressed his confidence that they can compete for the title once the postseason rolls on. The Lakers are 13th in the NBA heading to the All-Star break, two games behind the 10th seed for a Play-In spot. But LeBron emphasized earlier that it's not in his DNA to miss the playoffs in consecutive years.

“I've always been confident on any club I've been on, that if we can make it to the playoffs, we can compete with anyone,” James said of the Lakers' postseason chances, per Rachel Nichols of Showtime Sports.

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The Lakers have a difficult path waiting for them in their bid to qualify for the postseason. They have just 23 games remaining, and they will have to win more than half of that to book their tickets to the next round.

Nonetheless, if the Lakers are able to turn it around and actually qualify, James might just be right with his statement that they can compete with anyone–be it the top seeds of the conference. Considering their situation, making it to the playoffs would mean that they have finally resolved their issues and are clicking and meshing well as a team.

For now, though, James and co. will have to secure a playoff berth first before talking about competing on that stage.