The Los Angeles Lakers have locked up the third seed in the Western Conference. However, their potential opponent is far from certain, with four potential teams in a spot to earn the sixth seed.
Those four teams are the Denver Nuggets, the Los Angeles Clippers, the Golden State Warriors, and the Minnesota Timberwolves. Here is how each of them ranks as first-round opponents for the Lakers.
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4. Los Angeles Clippers
The Clippers are a team who have had past playoff success, but this season they are led by a 35-year-old James Harden, a most-improved candidate in Norman Powell, and Kawhi Leonard, who as usual, is dealing with injuries come playoff time.
Compared to the other teams on this list, they don’t quite have the star power that can match up with Luka Doncic and LeBron James. The main problem for the Lakers in a series with the Clippers may be size, with Ivica Zubac being a great starting NBA center, averaging around 17 points per game and 13 rebounds per game.
Unless Leonard is at his absolute best and at full health, it seems hard to imagine the Clippers giving too much of a challenge to the Lakers. They just don’t have the defensive or offensive firepower.
3. Minnesota Timberwolves
The Timberwolves are dangerous mainly because of Anthony Edwards. He has the talent to single-handedly win a playoff series. Fortunately for the Lakers, they also do with Doncic. The team also has some solid role players, led by elite defenders Rudy Gobert and Jaden McDaniels.
They also have some solid shooting around Edwards in Naz Reid, Donte DiVincenzo, and veteran point guard Mike Conley. Julius Randle is an interesting wild card as well, who has a chance to be a solid secondary scorer to Edwards.
What holds back the Timberwolves is inconsistency, as beyond Edwards, it is hard to really rely on anyone on offense. If the Lakers can slow down Edwards at all, they should have no problem beating them in a seven-game series.
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2. Denver Nuggets
Despite the Nuggets shockingly firing their head coach just before the end of the season, they still have superstar Nikola Jokic, who has single-handedly crushed the hopes and dreams of Lakers fans before.
The Nuggets still have most of the roster from their championship win, but lost a few key role players that have made them a different team. They are a bit reliant on some young players to help out their top veterans, which makes them more vulnerable than usual.
Firing Michael Malone is really the main reason this team isn’t the number one threat to the Lakers in the first round given the history between the two sides.
1. Golden State Warriors
The Warriors have been a completely different team since acquiring Jimmy Butler in the middle of the season. They also still have Steph Curry and Draymond Green, so they have plenty of playoff experience to be a huge threat to any team in the first round, never mind the Lakers.
While the Lakers have LeBron and Luka to carry the offense, the Warriors do have defenders with size and length to cause some problems. Both Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green have a chance to match up decently well with those two, and even provide some switchability to deal with pick and rolls and isos.
One positive for the Lakers is the Warriors also are lacking in size, so in that sense, they do match up decently well. Draymond Green will be the main center likely in the playoffs, which could allow the Lakers to play smaller and have LeBron play more center.
Overall, all of the potential Lakers opponents have pros and cons, but the Warriors are definitely the scariest team to face in the first round.
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