#5) Los Angeles Lakers
This admission shouldn’t really stun those who have paid attention.
For one, LeBron James still has yet to taste bitter defeat in the opening round of any playoffs. Though it would create a fun setting with fellow banana boat member, Chris Paul, attempting to dethrone the King from his crown before the first week of May rounds—it’s not exactly realistic.
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The Lakers currently possess the second-best offensive rating in the NBA (113.4) and are fifth in defensive rating (106.3). Though such a metric isn’t exactly a perfect tool for calibration, it provides enough insight on where the Lakers rank among the league’s best.
They’re a team that appears destined for a Western Conference Finals appearance and will likely pillage and burn the lands of opposing foes in their path.
In the three games the Oklahoma City Thunder and Lakers have done battle, Los Angeles has emerged the victor in each instance. Including a 15-point defeat to the Lakers on January 11 without the presence of James or Anthony Davis on the floor.
Given where either team lays in the standings it’s unlikely that this matchup comes to fruition. It would require the Lakers to drastically fall off and the Thunder to move up in the standings, or the Thunder to plummet to the eighth seed with the Lakers staying the course.
And honestly? That’s probably a good thing, this isn’t a team you want to see in the opening round of the playoffs.