The NBA's Western Conference playoffs have entered the final stage, and the Lakers and Warriors will face each other on April 10. The Warriors are currently 10th with 43 wins and 35 losses to lock up the play-in tournament, while the Lakers are ninth with 45 wins and 34 losses, 1.5 wins ahead of the Warriors. If the Warriors emerge victorious, both teams will be 35-loss and only 0.5 wins, and the Warriors have a chance to overtake their opponents to become ninth. A win for the Lakers would widen the gap by 2.5 games and keep them in contention for a top-eight finish against the Kings 45-33. Neither side can afford to lose this game, and this will determine the ultimate fate of both teams this season.
In the first game of the season between the two teams, the Lakers won the opponent 145-144 after two overtime struggles, Curry tied the game with a thick eyebrow layup in the last minute of regular time, the first overtime James missed the shot under Green's defense, and the second overtime direct free throw to kill the Warriors. In that game, the Lakers led 38-11 on free throws, while the Warriors led 23-9 on three-pointers, and the two teams played to their advantage. James slashed a 36+20+12 triple-double, Curry hit 9 three-pointers and scored 46 points, and the two scored 12 and 15 points respectively in overtime. This grand matchup also highlighted the decline in dominance of both teams, and this match was a classic.
In the second game, the Warriors beat the Lakers by 18 points, James was absent, the Warriors scored 6 more three-pointers, Curry scored 32 points and 8 assists with 6 three-pointers, and thick eyebrows 27 points and 15 rebounds. In the third game, he narrowly beat the Lakers by 7 points, and the thick eyebrows were hit with an eye injury and exited in the second quarter, James had 40 points, 8 rebounds and 9 assists, and Curry, Kuminga and Klay all broke out. This season, the Lakers have played a difficult game in each of the games that Zhan Mei has missed, and the fourth time he faced the Warriors, James's flu symptoms have not been eliminated, and the thick eyebrows' left eye still has uncomfortable symptoms, and if they can't play, the Lakers will fall 1-3 this season.
At present, although the Nuggets have the same record as the Timberwolves, the future schedule is more relaxed and is expected to become the first in the West. A loss to the Lakers would be a struggle to compete for a top-eight finish and would not be able to pass the play-in tournament for seventh, while a loss would result in a loss for the Warriors in eighth place and no home-court advantage. The Warriors were swept 4-0 by the Nuggets this season, while the Lakers were swept 3-0 by the Nuggets and 4-0 in the playoffs last season. If the Warriors are ranked 10th against the Lakers, it will be difficult to win, but if they are relatively good against the Kings, and if the Lakers and Warriors both fall out of the top eight, then this season will be a round trip even if they enter the playoffs, and the competition between them will be meaningless.