Last week, the Los Angeles Lakers overcame the Golden State Warriors, earning a slot in the Western Conference Finals and in NBA history.
Rise From the Bottom
This past Friday (May 12) adds another win to an unexpectedly positive season for this underdog team. The season began extremely tough for the Lakers, with a noticeably unbalanced roster that led to loss after loss throughout October and November. As a result, the Lakers began the 2023-2024 season with a 2-10 record. Just a matter of months ago, few thought this team could find the chemistry to pull it together on the court. Currently, they’re only eight wins away from claiming the championship title.
It’s undeniably the most impressive in-season turnaround in the league’s history. The Lakers made it official on Friday (May 12) by becoming the only team in American professional sports history to come dead last in their division and still make the final four for the playoffs. The only other team in NBA history that’s managed to grab a spot in the conference finals after starting 2-10 is the 1977-78 Seattle Supersonics. The win against the Golden State Warriors is especially imposing when you factor in their stacked lineup, including the league’s best 3-point shooter Stephen Curry and four-time NBA champion Andre Iguodala.
“One thing about when you play Golden State, you don’t have an opportunity to relax. You just don’t, so I’m not worried about us going in there comfortable. You just can’t do it vs. Golden State. It’s not possible.” Lebron James told reporters following their 104-101 win against the Warriors last Monday (May 8).
What’s Left for Lakers
With the Lakers now in high spirits, they still have many obstacles to face before they can claim the trophy. They’ll face off against the Denver Nuggets to kick off the NBA Western Conference finals. If that wasn’t already intimidating enough, they’ll still have to beat either the Boston Celtics or Philadelphia 76ers, both being tougher opponents than any team thus far. Nonetheless, the Lakers have already beat the odds in a massive way.
Lately, in NBA news, there’s been plenty of discourse surrounding the definition of failure. Notably, Giannis Antetokounmpo gave a reporter a poignant response following a recent loss to the Miami Heat that resulted in the Milwaukee Bucks elimination.
“There’s no failure in sports. You know, there’s good days, bad days. Some days you are able to be successful, some days you’re not. Some days it’s your turn, some days it’s not your turn.” He said. “Every year you work, you work towards something, towards a goal, right? Which is to get a promotion, be able to take care of your family, to be able to provide the house for them or take care of your parents,”
“You work towards a goal. It’s not a failure; it’s steps to success.”
Coincidentally, the Lakers are proving that sentiment correct in real time. With the finals beginning next month, time will tell how far this underdog team will go.
Written by Dreema Carrington
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