The Los Angeles Lakers haven't played the style of basketball that they were expecting to this season. Former players and fans within the organization haven't been happy, and whenever a Lakers team isn't winning, that's to be expected considering they're one of the most storied franchises in NBA history.

With a record of 26-30, they are now four games under.500 and have suffered losses to some pretty below-average teams.

Former Los Angeles Lakers star Shaquille O'Neal said this about what is expected of the Lakers and their title chances in an interview with TMZ:

“They definitely will make the playoffs,” Shaq says … adding there's always pressure within the Lakers organization to be the best.

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“This was one of the hardest franchises[Lakers] I ever had to play for,” Shaq says.

“I remember when I came here, Jerry West said, ‘Look, I know you do movies, I know you do rap albums and all that,' But, he made me look up [in the rafters] and I seen Wilt [Chamberlain] and Kareem [Abdul-Jabbar] and he said, ‘At the end of this, you're either going to be a bust or you're going to be a legend.' So, those guys have to decide how they want to be remembered.”

It's difficult to disagree with Shaquille O'Neal, but any team with LeBron James will be difficult to beat in the playoffs. Regardless of how well the Phoenix Suns and Golden State Warriors are playing, they have no desire to play LeBron and the Lakers in the first round.