Western Conference Standings Watch: Refusing to lose

Now on a five-game winning streak, the Lakers are doing everything possible to climb up the play-in standings in the West.

With the Western Conference being a tight-knit race, this will be a twice-weekly series looking at the Western Conference standings and games to watch as the Lakers look to move back into the playoffs.

The Lakers played without LeBron James against the Bucks and without Anthony Davis against the Grizzlies and won both games anyway.

On a five-game winning streak, this team has never looked this good. With reinforcement in Gabe Vincent soon returning, the Lakers are peaking at the right time. If a couple of teams can drop some games, they can climb up to eighth in the West before the season concludes.

Here are the games that have standing implications for the Lakers.

Games to Watch

Friday

Suns at Thunder — Phoenix is currently two games in front of Los Angeles, but the Lakers hold the tiebreaker, so every Suns game is a must-watch for Lakers fans.

The Thunder are one of the best teams in the league and they will be at home versus the Suns, so the odds are good that Oklahoma City can win.

Mavs at Kings —The Mavericks are also playing well, having won five straight and are now sixth in the West and out of the play-in standings. So, fans should be rooting for Kyrie Irving and Luka Dončić to keep cooking and beat the Kings on the road. A win by Dallas won’t be easy, as Sacramento is 21-14 at home.

Warriors at Hornets —The Warriors have been spiraling the last couple of weeks and even in victory, they have defeats. They just beat the Magic, which was a good win, but they did it despite Draymond Green getting ejected fewer than four minutes into the game.

On paper, they’ll have an easy game versus the Hornets on Friday, as Charlotte is essentially playing garbage minutes for the rest of the season.

Sunday

Jazz at Kings—The Sacramento homestand continues on Sunday when the Kings host the lowly Jazz. This late into the season, the Kings should take care of business and beat the Jazz.

However, we’ve seen weird results, like the Spurs' win against the Warriors and the Nuggets' loss to the Suns, so maybe an anomaly can occur and help the Lakers.

Warriors at Spurs — Speaking of the Warriors vs. Spurs, we have another matchup on Sunday. Can Victor Wembanyama help San Antonio end the season with a series with a 2-2 split versus Golden State?

A Spurs win will further cement the Lakers’ position at ninth and potentially push the Warriors out of the play-in if Houston keeps winning games. The Rockets are currently the hottest team in the NBA, with 10 straight wins and just a game back from the Warriors.

You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88.