LeBron James On The No. 1 Seed: 'Is There An Advantage There?'
The Lakers had an opportunity to clinch the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference in Saturday's game against the Toronto Raptors. If the Lakers won or the Clippers lost that evening, the Lakers would've locked down the top spot.
Neither scenario happened.
The Lakers fell to the Raptors, 107-92, while the Clippers beat the New Orleans Pelicans, 126-103.
The Lakers, who are atop the Western Conference with a record of 50-15, have six more seeding games to accomplish that goal. They're 5 1/2 games ahead of the second-place Clippers (45-21).
But James raised a good point Saturday -- does the No. 1 seed even matter anymore?
With all games being played inside the NBA bubble at Walt Disney World near Orlando without fans, the typical advantages of having a higher seed, such as less travel and playing more games in front of adoring fans if a series went seven games, are now irrelevant.
"Clinching the one seed, is there an advantage here?" James asked Saturday evening, flashing a smile. "There’s not much of a homecourt advantage here."
James, however, went on to say that even though that placement doesn't hold the same weight as it would in a typical season, the Lakers will still try to secure that spot.
The Lakers, who are considered one of the favorites to win the title, made the playoffs this season for the first time since 2013 and are competing for their first championship since 2010.
"We worked hard to be the No. 1 team in the West, possibly the No. 1 team in the league," James said. "Obviously Milwaukee’s still playing extremely well. But we got this far, so we might as well try to figure it out and close it off the right way."
