With nine games to go in their regular season schedule, the Los Angeles Lakers have a 36-37 record and are clinging to ninth place in the Western Conference.
They have the exact same record as the Dallas Mavericks, New Orleans Pelicans and Oklahoma City Thunder. Los Angeles will host the Thunder on Friday night in a game that will definitely have playoff implications.
LeBron James continues to sit out with a right foot tendon injury, but the team reportedly hopes he will be able to play in a few games during the first week of April as the schedule wraps up.
Until then, Fox Sports 1 personality Nick Wright, a well-known James apologist, is not only very confident the Lakers will win each of their next three games, but he also declared that once they have played those contests, they will rise to sixth place in the Western Conference.
It is very possible that the Purple and Gold will do exactly what Wright said. After playing the Thunder on Friday, the team will have a home-and-away set with the mediocre Chicago Bulls, a team that is hanging onto the final play-in tournament spot in the Eastern Conference. Chicago has been without former Lakers Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso, and star wing DeMar DeRozan is also dealing with a right quad strain.
The second of those contests against the Bulls will be the first of five straight on the road, which will end at Crypto.com Arena against the Los Angeles Clippers in a game where the Lakers will be designated as the visitors.
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Story originally appeared on LeBron Wire