Locked On Lakers - Daily Podcast On The Los Angeles Lakers

The Lakers, according to the fine folks at Tankathon (and by other measurements as well) have the league's easiest schedule down the stretch. That includes tonight's game against a hobbled New Orleans squad, and Wednesday against the Rockets, who are awful. They see the Bulls twice, get a beat up Dallas team, the Suns (at least once) without Kevin Durant and the Magic. By the time the schedule grants two games against Utah, the Jazz may or may not still be playing for a playoff berth...

It wasn't for lack of trying, but it was for lack of execution the Lakers lost a winnable game

Under normal circumstances, Sunday's 112-108 loss to the Knicks wouldn't be a major source of concern. The Lakers played hard, they didn't underestimate their opponent. They just weren't sharp. It happens. Except right now, the Lakers simply can't afford to have games where they're not sharp, and can't execute well enough to win games there for the taking. With the loss, the Lakers drop into a statistical tie with the Thunder for the 10th spot in the West...

The Lakers get a balanced effort on a night where Anthony Davis is quiet offensively

The Toronto Raptors arrived at the Crypt on Friday determined to prevent Anthony Davis from beating them. Whenever Davis got near the ball, he was generally double and even triple-teamed in an effort to either force a pass or prevent him from getting it in the first place. Toronto was clearly challenging the supporting cast of the Lakers, and to say the least, the supporting cast responded...

Good news and bad news for the Lakers in a tightly packed, injury-riddled playoff race

The Lakers are expected to get some serious lineup relief tonight vs. Toronto, with D'Angelo Russell returning to the floor after a six game absence. And none too soon, because while the team has performed admirably with Dennis Schröder and Austin Reaves functioning as primary ball-handlers and team organizers, it's not a role that either is perfectly suited to play...

Pau Gasol is the latest Laker to hit the rafters. Are these two next?

Tuesday was a good night for the Lakers in the standings, and for the Lakers celebrating history. They got a big win over the Grizzlies and also celebrated the retirement of Pau Gasol's #16. For the first time in a long time, it seems, the Lakers managed to combine a great night for pageantry with a great night for basketball...

It's been a long, long, looooooooong climb, filled with some ups and a whole bunch of downs and aided by a Western Conference that just refuses to kick it into high gear... but the Lakers have finally crawled back into the playoff picture...