Getty Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James
LeBron James is apparently no longer pulling punches when it comes to his feelings on the current state of the Los Angeles Lakers. And that includes his teammates, or maybe just one or two of them specifically. After the team suffered a 110-105 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday, their fourth loss in five games and second straight, James had plenty to say in his postgame interview.
To sum it up gently, LeBron wants anyone who can’t handle distractions to let the team know that they “can’t do this,” as Ben Golliver of the Washington Post revealed (per Spectrum SportsNet).
These were strong words from James, who obviously isn’t happy after the Lakers fell even further back in the standings and saw their playoff chances take another hit.
Lakers’ Current Playoff Outlook
With this loss, the Lakers fell to 29-31 on the season, and while it was fortunate that both the Sacramento Kings and San Antonio Spurs dropped their games, any loss hurts at this point. The Los Angeles Clippers play in the final game of the night on Monday against the Dallas Mavericks, and a win for them would hurt Luke Walton’s club even more.
Another situation to watch at this point for Lakers fans becomes the Minnesota Timberwolves, who have evened up their record with LeBron and company after defeating the Kings. This leaves both the Lakers and Timberwolves three games back of the No. 8 seed with Sacramento just one game out of the final playoff spot.
Lakers Upcoming Schedule & Key Games
Two crucial games on the Lakers schedule come against the Clippers, while they’ll also face the Kings once. Beyond that, James and company will not see the Spurs or Timberwolves again this year and have 22 games remaining after Monday. Of those games, 12 are at home, although one of the two Clippers matchups is listed as a road game.
In the middle of this final stretch, the Lakers have a tough five-game road trip. This includes dates with the Toronto Raptors, Milwaukee Bucks and Detroit Pistons who are also pushing for a playoff spot. To wrap up the year, the Lakers will play the Oklahoma City Thunder, Golden State Warriors, Clippers, Utah Jazz and Portland Trail Blazers over the final five games.
Of the 22 remaining games on the schedule for the Lakers, 16 of them come against teams who are either likely to make the playoffs or are in the mix for a spot currently.
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