The Lakers’ recent struggles have them 6th in the West, behind the Suns, Jazz, Nuggets, and Mavericks in the Western Conference standings.
While their placement isn’t set just yet, it does have the NBA thinking about a potential first-round matchup.
With the playoffs set to begin in a few weeks, it’s entirely possible that the Purple and Gold end up facing off against their inter-city rivals, the L.A. Clippers, who have brought back last year’s team with a few extra kicks.
With so much to dissect, NBA fans took to Twitter to debate who would come out on top if such a scenario were to play out.
As of right now, the Clippers are the No. 3 seed, and the Lakers are the No. 6 seed.
First round matchup? 👀🍿
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) May 2, 2021
https://twitter.com/_showtime_q/status/1388697467089260545https://twitter.com/S4Mi16k/status/1388698344374087682
i’m taking clippers lowkey pic.twitter.com/CqQG2FatV2
— Alvaro 🇨🇴 (@alvaro_1629) May 2, 2021
Clippers in 6
— – (@LowkeyLuti) May 2, 2021
https://twitter.com/5xChampCo/status/1388705201675292673https://twitter.com/AusSixers/status/1388704069552799745https://twitter.com/lefraud_jame/status/1388698432181788672
Obviously, everything hinges on LeBron James. If he’s fully healthy and playing like himself, there’s a good chance for the defending Champs to pull off an upset. The problem is, James himself has already indicated that his most recent injury (high ankle sprain) might be one that follows him for the rest of his career.
As for the Clippers, they’re battling against their own demons. Facing increasing pressure from the front office, and their own unfortunate past, L.A. still has a lot to prove if they want to be taken seriously. Can their two stars get the job done? Are the Clippers a franchise perpetually cursed to fall short?
Needless to say, many questions need answering and no matter who these teams face in May, June, or July, they’ve got an uphill battle to fight.
