When the Lakers used multiple trade assets in order to acquire Russell Westbrook as part of an offseason deal with the Wizards, skeptics wondered if a “Big Three” of Westbrook, LeBron James and Anthony Davis could bring a championship to Los Angeles. When the front office later filled out the roster with past-their-prime veterans, those skeptics grew even louder.
But even the biggest Lakers doubters couldn’t have possibly seen this coming. Heading down the final stretch of the 2021-22 regular season, Los Angeles is fighting just to secure a spot in the Western Conference Play-In Tournament.
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James-led teams are typically using March and April as ramp-up periods before the championship chase, but this Lakers group still hasn’t found a winning formula through 60-plus games. Could Los Angeles miss out on the NBA Playoffs and Play-In Tournament entirely?
What are the Lakers’ NBA Playoff and Play-In Tournament chances?
As of March 5, the Lakers have a seven percent chance of making the NBA Playoffs, according to FiveThirtyEight’s projections. That’s much lower than other possible Play-In Tournament teams such as the Timberwolves (89 percent), Clippers (69 percent) and Pelicans (34 percent).
They have a 62 percent chance of making the Western Conference Play-In Tournament, according to The Ringer’s Odds Machine. That model views the Spurs (45 percent) as the biggest challenger to take a spot from the Timberwolves, Clippers, Lakers or Pelicans.
NBA standings 2022: Western Conference
(Current as of March 5)
| Seed | Team | Record | Games back |
| 1. | Suns | 51-12 | — |
| 2. | Warriors | 43-20 | 8 |
| 3. | Grizzlies | 44-21 | 8.0 |
| 4. | Jazz | 39-23 | 11.5 |
| 5. | Mavericks | 39-25 | 12.5 |
| 6. | Nuggets | 37-26 | 14 |
| 7. | Timberwolves* | 36-29 | 16.0 |
| 8. | Clippers* | 34-31 | 18 |
| 9. | Lakers* | 28-35 | 23.0 |
| 10. | Pelicans* | 27-36 | 24 |
| — | Trail Blazers | 25-38 | 26 |
| — | Spurs | 24-40 | 27.5 |
| — | Kings | 24-42 | 28.5 |
| — | Thunder | 20-43 | 31 |
| — | Rockets | 15-48 | 36 |
* NBA Play-In Tournament teams if season ended today
Lakers schedule 2022
The Lakers face the second-toughest remaining schedule of any NBA team, according to Tankathon. Only seven of their final 20 games will be played at home, and they have three-game and four-game road trips in March.
| Date | Opponent | Time (ET) | National TV |
| March 7 | at Spurs | 8:30 p.m. | — |
| March 9 | at Rockets | 8 p.m. | — |
| March 11 | vs. Wizards | 10:30 p.m. | NBA TV |
| March 13 | at Suns | 9 p.m. | ESPN |
| March 14 | vs. Raptors | 10:30 p.m. | — |
| March 16 | at Timberwolves | 8 p.m. | — |
| March 18 | at Raptors | 7:30 p.m. | — |
| March 19 | at Wizards | 8 p.m. | — |
| March 21 | at Cavaliers | 7 p.m. | — |
| March 23 | vs. 76ers | 10 p.m. | ESPN |
| March 27 | at Pelicans | 7 p.m. | — |
| March 29 | at Mavericks | 7:30 p.m. | TNT |
| March 31 | at Jazz | 10 p.m. | TNT |
| April 1 | vs. Pelicans | 10:30 p.m. | NBA TV |
| April 3 | vs. Nuggets | 3:30 p.m. | ABC |
| April 5 | at Suns | 10:30 p.m. | NBA TV |
| April 7 | at Warriors | 10 p.m. | TNT |
| April 8 | vs. Thunder | 10:30 p.m. | — |
| April 10 | at Nuggets | TBD | — |
How does the NBA Play-In Tournament work?
- The NBA Play-In Tournament will be held after the conclusion of the 2021-22 regular season and before the start of the first round of the 2022 NBA Playoffs. The teams that finish Nos. 1-6 in the standings of each conference will be guaranteed playoff spots. Teams Nos. 7-10 will enter the Play-In Tournament.
- Each conference’s Nos. 7 and 8 teams will face off, with the winner earning the No. 7 seed in the playoffs. The loser will still have one more opportunity to reach the playoffs.
- Each conference’s Nos. 9 and 10 teams will face off, with the winner advancing to play the loser of the No. 7-vs.-No. 8 game. The loser of the No. 9-vs.-No. 10 game will be eliminated from playoff contention.
- The loser of the No. 7-vs.-No. 8 game and the winner of the No. 9-vs.-No. 10 game will then play against each other. The winner of that game will be the No. 8 seed in the playoffs. The loser will be eliminated from playoff contention.
- Beyond the Play-In Tournament, the 2022 NBA Playoffs will follow the typical format, with full best-of-seven series all the way through the NBA Finals.