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The Los Angeles fell to 27-34 on Tuesday night after losing for the third game in a row, this time to the Dallas Mavericks. As of right now, the squad sits in ninth place, which means they'd have to advance to the playoffs through the play-in.
Nevertheless, LeBron James and Co. believe the postseason can still be a reality, despite their struggles at the moment. And before the All-Star break, it was Russell Westbrook, not LeBron, who injected belief into the Lakers with an impactful speech.
Via Bleacher Report's Jake Fischer:
The former MVP gave an impassioned speech to Lakers players prior to the All-Star break, sources told B/R, harping on Los Angeles' need to take a unified direction to their fight for a postseason berth. Westbrook offered similar internal motivations during last season's burst for the 8-seed with Washington.
Of course, when Russ played for the Wizards last season, they had to go through two play-in games in order to make the postseason. Washington lost to the Celtics in the No. 7 vs No. 8 game, but then beat the Pacers to advance to the first round.
That being said, there is definitely a chance the Lakers might have to go through a similar path. Only the top-six teams in each conference automatically advance to the playoffs, with seeds 7-10 having to compete in the play-in. If LA did remain in ninth or even 10th, they'd have to win a pair of games.
That being said, the Lakers roster is built for the playoffs. They have three top 75 players and several Hall of Famers. The chemistry is simply just not there right now. Once Anthony Davis gets healthy again as well, it should make a big difference. But ultimately, Westbrook himself needs to step up. He's failed to score 20 or more points in nine consecutive outings. It's all about accountability.
