Barring an absolute collapse and/or injuries to Luka, then yes.

But every team Deandre Ayton has left made the playoffs the following year so one of these streaks will have to be broken

Those teams didn’t have Luka Dončić

I don’t think enough teams in the west have gotten THAT much better to knock the Lakers out of the playoffs. I think they’ll fall into the 3-5 seed range. I don’t think the Suns, Blazers, or Clippers are going to make that much of a jump. I think the Nuggets will be largely the same as last season. The Wolves have changed a lot so we’ll see what their chemistry will be like. Jimmy will be back, but it’s a question mark of how he’ll come back at his age off that injury. Same with Kyrie and the Mavs. It’ll be injuries if anything that derail the Lakers than anything the other west teams will do, I think.

The only reason the Heat missed the playoffs in 2015 was because Bosh and Wade were injured or had health issues. They missed qualifying by two games. If say Bosh doesn’t miss half the season, they absolutely make the playoffs.

Yeah lol. I’m guessing 5th or 6th seed but we’ll make it as long as Luka stays relatively healthy.

This post is gonna look funny when lakers get the 3 or 4th seed again.

Luka would drag 9 cows to the playoffs, they’ll be fine

It’s also the first time LeBron left a team after not being its indisputable best player, and with a next-generation superstar already taking the reins. I think the west hasn’t really gotten stronger overall so far in the offseason so I have a hard time seeing us fall out of the playoffs even in the worst case scenarios.

Even if Luka missed significant time they’d be a top 8 seed

This time is different When LeBron previously left teams it was because they could no longer compete. He left the lakers because they didn’t offer him a contract and wanted to build around Luka.

i don’t think the west is deep enough for them to miss it, but with some freak luka injury it could happen

We have Luka and in today’s world he is better than LeBron.

Unless Luka misses the entire season I don’t see the Lakers missing the playoffs. Especially today with the play in tournament giving extra life to those on the fringe.

Funny enough, the Lakers don’t get Luka without LeBron first joining the Lakers and pushing for the AD trade.

I don’t think they’re great, but they at least have to make the playoffs

We have Luka Doncic

The Luka disrespect in this sub is insane

If the Lakers miss the playoffs next year the entire organization will be so embarrassed.

The Lakers are interesting since they were the worst new team LeBron joined back in 2018 and are the best team he’s ever left.  

Obviously mostly hinges on Luka staying healthy

More likely to make it than not is my opinion as a Lakers fan, not sure what others think.

I’d say 5-6 seed in the west.

OKC, Spurs are clearly better. Denver and Minn might be better…maybe Houston. They’re 6th at worst.

Yes, we will

It’s not impossible but I imagine Luka should be enough to guarantee they make it

If Luka & AR both miss 4 cumulative weeks, they’ll probably miss. As long at they’re healthy they’re making the playoffs

You mean it’s not entirely guaranteed, not entirely impossible.

Lakers are definitely gonna make the playoffs after that who knows

They better lmao

I hope so

Yes

Well they already broke the streak of him making the playoffs his first year there after switching to a new team.

They’re one Luka or Kessler injury from missing the playoffs. With Kessler’s history I give the Lakers a 20-30% chance of missing the playoffs

Mmm

Lakers will make the playoffs.

Historically when lebron leaves the teams mvp candidate leaves with him…this time that didn’t happen.

duhh

this isn’t that weird of a streak. unlike almost every other star, when lebron leaves, he leaves as an unrestricted FA. it is extremely rare for this to happen, because it means his old team gets nothing

naturally, if your best player leaves for nothing, you’re going to win a lot fewer games. on top of that, when you lose your best player for nothing, the smart decision is to tank. that’s why the prior team doesn’t make the playoffs

Would’ve been easily still the case without Nico.

#ThankyouNico

If Luka is healthy he can drag some pretty stinky teams to the playoffs

That’s absolutely bat shit wild if you think about it. From finals to not even playoffs. Like wow. I think the 2019 cavs had love too.

He literally carried them to the finals. 2010 is an even better example. Similar squad, just nothing

Lakers should be kinda nice. Kessler might be the most underrated player in my eyes.

Let the Luka hate brigade commence.

The Luka slander is insane

The Lakers should make the playoffs, health permitting.

If they don’t the whole front office is gone lol

He’s always left other teams as the best player and those teams have in to every whim he had for the roster.

Lol, yes we will.

Yeah, Luka is that good.

Imagine if the mavs didn’t gift luka to the Lakers. They’d be so fucked right now.

Yes.

Top 4 seed

Could they yes with some injuries. Luka missed the playoff in the 22-23 season, and it’s not like Walker has ever made the playoffs.

No

Yeah they’ll make the playoffs because the Lakers got smart and stopped building Lebron teams that completely fuck up the future

Those teams didn’t have Luka

They will miss the meaningful rounds if the playoffs.

Yep. Lakers will struggle a lot this year. Doncic will be noticeably frustrated.

Anything can happen…you wouldn’t think a team that still had Bosh and Wade would miss the playoffs in what everyone said was a “weak” east…but they did. Luka gets hurt and the team that’s left isn’t going to be very good at all.

If the Lakers somehow miss the playoffs they for sure are getting the first pick with the new system

Lakers will be better without Bron

The real question is will the Lakers be better or worse without LeBron and I believe they will be worse. I think Luka has a breakout year but the Lakers will probably be in the play-in tournament fighting for their lives.

will Luka be healthy? he has been trending the wrong direction in game played over several years, and while he did bounce back a bit this past year, if he falls back to playing only 50 games, Lakers may need to win the play in to make the playoffs, and that might not happen. It is not a lock, Thunder, Spurs, Nuggets, Rockets, and Wolves are all likely to be better in the regular season than the Lakers this year, throw in potentially Portland, Suns, and/or some other team doing better than expected combined with Lakers doing worse than expected due to LeBron leaving, Rui being a stretch 4 that the Lakers have not really replaced, and the Lakers really building themelves around Doncic completely while still not really going all in on that (i.e. Reeves is not likely to be the lob passer needed to really be able to maximize Kessler as a pick and roll guy and not make Kessler’s lack of shooting cause some issues with spacing, so their offense really is reliant on Doncic to be good, yet Reeves being there means that Doncic is not being surrounded by good defenders that he needs to make up for Doncic’s defensive limitations. Grated, this last part is more about roster building for the playoffs, but it will still affect the regular season).

I mean, if Doncic plays 70 then yes, but Doncic could be relatively healthy, play 50-55 games, and Lakers loose in the play in, as they are not as talented as they were the last couple of years so are not able to withstand Luka not playing games as well as they have the last couple of years.

Luka and Reaves are going to have to carry so much load that they will both be worn out and injured by the end of season that it won’t matter if they make the playoffs because they will get knocked out of the first round if they do. Lakers need more depth badly.

lakers healthy are a 6-8 seed and 2nd round exit.

not to be down on lebron hes still great for his age but the reason those teams were ass without bron was he was there mots impactful regular season player lebron was not that at all for the lakers recently

Luka has to play 75 games…

If he plays less than 65, they could miss the playoffs.

But if they’re healthy, they’re a play in team that gets in the playoffs