When the Lakers won their eighth consecutive game, more fans started wondering if they could win the NBA Championship. In that 134-126 win over the Miami Heat, LeBron James tied the NBA all-time record for most games played, and Luka Dončić scored a season-best 60 points. But even if records are getting broken, the Oklahoma City Thunder and the San Antonio Spurs are still ahead in the Western Conference, and that’s before we even consider the playoffs. Can JJ Redick’s team really make a deep playoff run?
Dončić Could Carry the Lakers
While the Lakers were winning their eighth straight game, the Thunder were winning their 10th. But that doesn’t mean the Lakers can’t beat the best.
As we recently reported, Redick has backed Luka Dončić for MVP this season. Asked why Dončić wasn’t getting more recognition, Redick suggested perhaps because Dončić complains to refs too much, then simply said, “I don’t know.” If the Lakers are to challenge the Thunder, favorites for the NBA Championship (according to current NBA odds), they will need Dončić to continue this form. The Slovenian has reached the playoffs in each of his last five seasons. He was only around 75-1 on most sportsbooks to win MVP following the Heat game. Thunder’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is widely considered the favorite.
Timeless LeBron James
When James tied that record with his 1,611th NBA game, Redick affectionately called him a “psycho”. James was playing in his second game in two nights, despite taking a knock on his elbow in the win over Houston. His participation against the Heat inspired Austin Reaves to take part, too. Reaves had a bruise on his shooting wrist, but decided he couldn’t “let a 41-year-old play” and not play himself.
James, who finished the game against the Heat with 19 points, 15 rebounds, and 10 assists, is also inspiring Marcus Smart. The guard said LeBron’s professional attitude and refusal to take anything for granted, even after accomplishing everything, “forces you to do the same.”
James has been rumored with a move back to Cleveland. Reportedly, only an extension in Los Angeles or a trade to the Cavaliers is possible. James has been quiet about retirement, and that is still a possibility after this season, though Lakers legend Byron Scott has suggested he will return to Cleveland before calling it quits. Scott said the city would love it and that James ending his career there would be fitting.
Could the Lakers Upset the Odds?
Despite Dončić and James potentially hitting form at a crucial time, the Lakers are only around 50-1 to win the Championship. Along with the Thunder and Spurs, the Boston Celtics, Denver Nuggets, Cleveland Cavaliers, New York Knicks, Detroit Pistons, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Houston Rockets are all considered likelier winners. The Lakers’ odds were admittedly shortened after the Heat game from around 65-1 a week prior.
If the Lakers can surprise the bookies this year, it would be their first title since 2020. The six-year gap is not as big as the one that preceded it: it was 2010 when the Lakers beat the Celtics in the Finals, with Kobe Bryant named Finals MVP for the second year in a row.
