Community Shootaround: Lakers’ Playoff Chances

The Lakers own a record of 3-3 after upsetting the Warriors on Friday night. The win was a surprising feat for the struggling franchise and coach Luke Walton remained stoic about the outcome, adding that “it was just good to see the progress continuing.” 

Although it is too early in the season to celebrate anything substantial, the young season has been promising thus far for a team that was expected to be a strong contender for the 2017 No. 1 pick.  Julius Randle looked like a monster in the paint, scoring 20 points and nabbing 14 rebounds in Friday’s win. D’Angelo Russell looked like the team’s point guard of the future, making three of his seven shots from behind the arc. Lou Williams, who scored 18 points in the win, believes the team is destined for a great season. “We’ve got a lot of young talent here,” Williams added. “Finally it’s starting to look like we have some pieces in the right places.”

So that leads us to tonight’s topic: Can the Lakers make the playoffs this season? This team loves basketball and with other assumed contenders (Dallas and New Orleans, we’re looking at you) struggling out of the gate, we may see a surprising team make a push toward a postseason birth.

Why not the Lakers? Veteran additions Timofey Mozgov and Luol Deng have fit in nicely with Los Angeles. If the young core can keep producing, this could be a team that competes on a nightly basis and gives itself a shot at snatching the eighth seed in the Western Conference.

Do you believe the Lakers will compete for the playoffs? If not, how many wins will they earn this season? Take to the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions on this team. We look forward to what you have to say.

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