Lakers: Why LA's Remaining Schedule Could be Biggest Obstacle to Postseason

The Lakers remaining schedule is no picnic.

Tomorrow, a three day late season respite for the Lakers will be over. They'll plunge back into one of the toughest remaining schedules in the league with a spot in the play tournament on the line. 

LeBron James nagging knee injury and the possible return of Anthony Davis are big factors in whether or not the Lakers can qualify for the play-in tournament as the ninth or tenth seed. The slate of games that have as left might be just as big of a challenge.

Sunday 3/27: Lakers at Pelicans

LA will start a three-game road trip against the Pelicans team that through Friday, has an identical record to the Lakers (31-42). It's a pivotal game as far as play-in tournament seeding and determining which team will have to worry about the lurking Spurs more. Which is who the Pelicans host on the night prior to the game against LA.

Tuesday 3/29: Lakers at Mavericks

The Lakers then head to Dallas to play a team that's beaten the Nets, Celtics, and 76ers this month. The last time the two teams met, Luka Doncic dominated in the fourth to lead the Mavericks to a 109-104 victory. 

Thursday 3/31: Lakers at Jazz

Oddly enough, LA's season seems to be defined by Jazz games. There was the January win that reportedly saved Frank Vogel's job and the game that LeBron James single-handily won in February in the middle of a brutal stretch where LA lost seven of eight. The defining trend will continue next week in Utah.

Friday 4/1: Pelicans at Lakers

The second matchup of what feels like the play-in before the play-in. The Lakers will host the Pelicans as the second game of a back-to-back. Hopefully they get plenty of sleep on the flight back from Salt Lake City.

Sunday 4/3: Nuggets at Lakers

The Lakers second to last home game will be against a Denver team battling for playoff seeding. At the moment, seeds four through seven are separated by just two and a half games. LA will have their hands full with a hungry Nuggets team led by MVP candidate, and last season's winner of the award, Nikola Jokic.

Tuesday 4/5: Lakers at Suns

Having to play the best team in the NBA with postseason hopes on the line isn't ideal, but there's a chance the Suns are already resting key players by the first week of April. If not, the Lakers will have to be better than the team that got smoked by 29 points back in mid-March in Phoenix.

Thursday 4/7: Lakers at Warriors

Unlike the Suns, the Warriors could be in a dogfight to stay in the top three in the West. Even if Steph Curry isn't back, Golden State has proven they can win games without their superstar. Hopefully the Lakers don't need 56 points from LeBron to get the win this time around. 

Friday 4/8: Thunder at Lakers

The Lakers will face the Thunder in the second leg of a California back-to-back. Oklahoma City has been one of the worst teams in the league this year, but still owns a 2-1 series record over LA this year. Hopefully a veteran LA roster doesn't get caught looking ahead to their final game of the season.

Sunday 4/10: Lakers at Nuggets

The Lakers finish their season at the site of their most embarrassing loss. Back in January, the Nuggets annihilated the Lakers by 37 points at home. Similar to the Suns game, Denver might be resting Jokic and other key starters depending on the standings.

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