Will Lebron's Lakers Even Make the Playoffs? (poll)

[Celtics4ever]

A wasted season for LeBron and the Lakers doing poorly is a good thing in my book.  I agree with the rest.

[jpotter33]

I think they’re a borderline playoff team - 7 seed at highest and probably no worse than 9 or 10 if missing the playoffs.

[CelticSooner]

They have some easy wins coming up.

[bopna]

Lebron is too good for them to miss it.

They will be around 6-8 if they continue their average play but if they improve their D and mesh well before february then they could be a 4th seed.

[gouki88]

Lebron is too good for them to miss it.

They will be around 6-8 if they continue their average play but if they improve their D and mesh well before february then they could be a 4th seed.

I would be very surprised if they make the 4th seed. The teams immediately ahead of them have improvements that are more likely to come / certainties. New Orleans will get AD back. Thunder have won 4 in a row and are seemingly back on track. The Jazz should improve. The Spurs will continue to gel. Then there are the Rockets, who are starting to get it back on track.

Then there are teams like the Warriors, the Nuggets and the Trailblazers (a team I apparently underestimated preseason) who are all playing at a much higher level than LA.

[GreenEnvy]

Lebron is too good for them to miss it.

They will be around 6-8 if they continue their average play but if they improve their D and mesh well before february then they could be a 4th seed.

I’m not so positive they make it, but I am positive they won’t be the 4 seed. If they continue this “average play,” they are missing the playoffs. They need to get better.

I thought LeBron would start to age this season, and I think it’s showing already. People tend to overlook the Cavs were built for him with shooters and low-usage guys. This team really isn’t, at all.

[Phantom255x]

Lakers are 8-7 but are currently 9th in the West playoff race.

That's the thing about Lebron's new team, this isn't the East where having like 45 wins will be still enough for a Top-4 seed. Good chance the Lakers finish the year somewhere around 45-47 wins but are something like a 6-7 seed in the West (5 at best).

[SparzWizard]

I just don't want LeBron to drop 51 points on the Celtics at the TD Garden, nor watching the Lakers sweep the Celtics this season...cuz with the way they playing right now, it looks baaad.

[blink]

Yes as long as LBJ stays healthy

This is pretty much where I am at as well.  I don't think they are any higher than a 7/8 seed and it will take pretty much everything lebrons got to get them there, but I think they make it as long as he is healthy.

[Moranis]

So a quarter through the season and at 13-9 they are tied with Portland for the 6th seed.  They are 2.5 games behind the top seeded Clippers and just 3 games ahead of the Spurs for 2nd worst in the conference.  Should be an interesting season out west.

[cman88]

So a quarter through the season and at 13-9 they are tied with Portland for the 6th seed.  They are 2.5 games behind the top seeded Clippers and just 3 games ahead of the Spurs for 2nd worst in the conference.  Should be an interesting season out west.

Yeah, looking at the standings for both the west and even the east. everything is pretty crowded. Even as poor as the celtics have played, if they can get a streak going they are 3.5 games out of 2nd seed

[bopna]

So a quarter through the season and at 13-9 they are tied with Portland for the 6th seed.  They are 2.5 games behind the top seeded Clippers and just 3 games ahead of the Spurs for 2nd worst in the conference.  Should be an interesting season out west.

Yeah, looking at the standings for both the west and even the east. everything is pretty crowded. Even as poor as the celtics have played, if they can get a streak going they are 3.5 games out of 2nd seed

there is better parity in the East.

[Moranis]

So a quarter through the season and at 13-9 they are tied with Portland for the 6th seed.  They are 2.5 games behind the top seeded Clippers and just 3 games ahead of the Spurs for 2nd worst in the conference.  Should be an interesting season out west.

Yeah, looking at the standings for both the west and even the east. everything is pretty crowded. Even as poor as the celtics have played, if they can get a streak going they are 3.5 games out of 2nd seed

there is better parity in the East.

Uh no.  The West has parity, the East does not.  Though some of that parity in the West is injury driven.  If the Warriors were fully healthy, I think they are pretty clearly the 1 seed (they are 10-2 in Curry's games for example).  The Rockets are 0-5 without Paul.  The Pelicans are 0-4 without Davis. 

[CelticsElite]

http://www.espn.com/chalk/story/_/id/26006437/lebron-james-los-angeles-lakers-not-favored-make-postseason-westgate-las-vegas-superbook

Vegas: Lakers no longer favored to make the playoffs

[tazzmaniac]

The Lakers are 2 games behind the Kings and the Clippers and tankathon shows them with a significantly harder remaining strength of schedule.