Lakers late surge
The Lakers have swung into serious Western Conference contention with a late-season surge as teams jockey for seeding with just over six weeks left in the regular season (el-balad.com) — podcasters are now ranking L.A. alongside Minnesota and Denver as real threats (youtube.com). Analysts say the Lakers’ experience and recent form have shifted them from pretenders to legitimate contenders in projections ( ).
Lakers sit 45-25 and are listed third in the Western Conference standings with 12 regular-season games remaining in the 82-game slate. (espn.ph) Los Angeles has ripped off an eight-game winning streak and has won 10 of 11 games over the past month, tightening the playoff picture in the West. (espn.ph) The surge includes a 127-125 overtime victory over the Denver Nuggets on March 14, a 120-106 win that completed a season sweep of the Minnesota Timberwolves on March 10, a 124-116 road victory at Houston on March 18, and a 134-126 win at Miami on March 19. (espn.com) LeBron James produced a near-perfect 13-for-14 shooting night in the March 18 win and passed 12,000 career rebounds in that game, while Austin Reaves scored 32 points in the overtime win against Denver — two recent individual performances driving the late surge. (espn.com) National power rankings and basketball podcasts have moved L.A. into the same “threat” tier as Minnesota and Denver this month, even as some commentators — including Paul Pierce on a recent podcast — argue the Lakers still risk an early postseason exit against those same teams. (usatoday.com) If the season ended today the Lakers sit in a No. 3 seed projection and would be matched with the No. 6 team in the West in Round 1, with the SoFi Play‑In set for April 14 and the 2026 playoffs scheduled to begin April 18. (sports.betmgm.com)
