After falling to a 45-35 record on the year and losing a game they should have won against the tenth-seeded Golden State Warriors 44-35 on Tuesday night, how high can the ninth-seeded Los Angeles Lakers finish in the Western Conference standings? 

And how much worse can things get? We have everything covered.

With two games remaining, LA could finish the 2023–24 NBA season as strong as 47–35 or as weak as 45–37. If Los Angeles wins their season finale against the New Orleans Pelicans on April 14 (Saturday), they have a chance to finish as high as sixth seed. 

Other than the seventh-seeded Phoenix Suns, who are now 46-33, none of the other teams in between them (which also includes the Sacramento Kings) could end with a 47-win season for this to occur.

The Warriors, who have won eight of their previous nine games (and now two in a row), have a good chance of pulling ahead of LA in the rankings.

Leading by All-Stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis, Los Angeles has appeared as a different club when head coach Darvin Ham inserted guards D’Angelo Russell and Austin Reaves along with forward Rui Hachimura in the starting lineup alongside James and Davis. 

However, the club has dropped its last two games, and Davis has missed the majority of them because of an eye ailment. In the final run, things could not go as smoothly for Los Angeles if he is unavailable.