Which teams do the Lakers have tiebreakers over in the Western Conference play-in race?
With the play-in race coming down to the wire, here's a look at the Lakers' tiebreaker situation.
With the NBA season ending on Apr. 14, there is still no guarantee of where the Lakers will end up in the standings. Los Angeles currently finds itself smack dab in the middle of the play-in race, in ninth place, two games behind the seventh-seed Kings and two and a half games in front of the tenth-seed Warriors.
With so many possibilities and the standings being airtight, it may come down to the tiebreakers deciding who ends up higher than another team.
Here is the tiebreaker situation between the Lakers and all the play-in-contending teams.
Sacramento Kings
The Kings absolutely owned the Lakers this season, sweeping the season series 4-0. So, for the Lakers to pass the Kings, they’ll have to be better, as Sacramento owns the tiebreaker.
Phoenix Suns
The Lakers own the tiebreaker over the Suns, beating them in three of the five matchups they had this season. This makes Phoenix the target Los Angeles needs to be keeping an eye on. The gap between the two teams is currently at two games and passing them would put the Lakers in eighth place in the West.
They have a solid chance of passing the Suns, as Phoenix has the toughest remaining schedule in the NBA.
Golden State Warriors
Warriors lead Lakers 2-1 in season series thanks to that game last week. If they lose the final matchup, Lakers win tiebreaker on division record.
— Hardwood Paroxysm (@HPbasketball) March 25, 2024
Neither team owns the tiebreaker here, as the season series is currently at 2-1 with the Warriors leading. The fourth and final game is on Apr. 9 and a win by Golden State would give them the tiebreaker. A defeat would make the series even and the Lakers would win the tiebreaker via the division record.
The Lakers are currently on a four-game winning streak and have won seven of their last 10 games. They only own the tiebreaker over the Suns and could earn it over the Warriors, so the path toward climbing higher in the play-in standings will require them to win their games and get some help.
So far, they’ve been controlling what they can control and winning their games. Now it’s a matter of keeping an eye on the Western Conference standings and getting some help from opposing teams so they can avoid the 9/10 play-in game.
You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88.