The Los Angeles Lakers try to enter playoff mode

With the NBA at its usual mid-February break, it’s finally time for the teams to take a breather for a few days and prepare for the final sprint. Between now and April, two fundamental months are coming for women contenderin which to complete the run-in before the playoffs, and above all for those teams lingered in the standings, which a pass for the postseason they have yet to tear it up.

Those who belong to both categories are the Los Angeles Lakers. The yellow-purples are in 13th place in the West, two wins away from the play-in area and four from direct entry into the playoffs; what if LeBron James he called the 23 remaining games “among the most important of his career” – something unusual for someone who has played in ten NBA Finals – it is because the Lakers feel they have concrete chances in the playoffs, in case they manage to access them. A sensation that has the right to citizenship, after the recent revolution on the market. Or rather, the master class by Rob Pelinka.

The general manager showed up at the last week of trade season with the urgent need to make changes, with enormous pressures (internal and external) and, above all, with few assets to use. Moving in a context full of problems, both in the field and in terms of salary. In the end, however, he succeeded in the sleight of hand, overturning the roster and filling all the structural deficiencies shown in the 32 defeats (out of 59 games) gained so far.

The first dysfunction to deal with was the presence of Westbrook, whose arrival in 2021 proved to be a wrong choice and difficult to reverse, due to his cumbersome contract. The solution was found in a creative three-team exchange with the Jazz and Timberwolves, which brought to Los Angeles a guard more suited to the technical context in D’Angelo Russell, and two reliable wingmen in Vanderbilt and Beasley, who respond exactly to the needs of the Lakers in terms, respectively, of defensive versatility and perimeter skills. All this, giving only Westbrook’s contract and a future first-round pick (moreover with strong protections, which could make her a second-round pick).

Adding up the arrivals, also at a good price, of Hachimura and Bamba, the feeling is that Pelinka has enormously improved the human material available to coach Ham, and at the same time the future prospects of the franchise. The Lakers, in fact, are now younger, with greater wage flexibility and even with lighter payrolls. The answer, at this point, must arrive on the field.

Above all, the physical conditions of the two stars will be fundamental: Davis, who returned in February after a month’s absence, but whose integrity is always a cause for concern; and James, who is still 38 years old, and incidentally suffered a minor injury during the All-Star Game. Problems like this, in any case, seem to worry more some competitors, such as Warriors and Wolves.

Otherwise, the calendar leaves room for optimism. The Lakers will be able to play several direct matches on their field – Golden State, Utah, Minnesota, Oklahoma City – and in general they are, according to Tankathon, among the teams with the easiest course on paper.

As LeBron said in an unfortunate interview in 2019, it’s time for the yellow-purples to activate the playoff mode. If they succeed, the race for the Western Conference scepter would be enriched with a credible candidate.