Lakers Rise in Fresh NBA Power Rankings Following Thrilling Warriors Win

The Los Angeles Lakers have been playing some good basketball and these power rankings reflect that.

Dec 25, 2024; San Francisco, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) dribbles against Golden State Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins (22) during the third quarter at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

The Los Angeles Lakers have had a bit of a roller coaster ride this season. They started out as one of the best teams in the entire league after a 10-4 start. JJ Redick was getting a lot of praise for how he was starting out his coaching career. Then things took a turn.

After that great start, the Lakers proceeded to lose seven of their next nine games. Some injuries played a part in that, but it was that stretch that put the Lakers behind the eight ball in the standings. They fell down to tenth in the Western Conference, which barely put them in the play-in.

Now, LA is playing good basketball again. They have won four of their last five games, including a last-second victory over the Golden State Warriors on Christmas. After that win, the Lakers were able to move up in the newest power rankings put out by Bleacher Report.

Los Angeles has moved up from 16th to 15th in their rankings after the win. LeBron James continues to be one of the best players in the NBA at the age of 39. He turns 40 in a few days and he's still averaging 23.5 points, 7.9 rebounds, and nine assists per game.

Now that the Lakers have had a couple of months playing under Redick, the team knows what their new coach expects of them. Their offensive rating slipped quite a bit in December because of a lack of three-point shooting, but that has corrected itself a bit.

Still, the Lakers know that they are not one of the best teams in the NBA. They still need some help if they want to contend for an NBA Championship. They are widely expected to make at least one move at the trade deadline in order to make a bigger push for a title.

The Lakers can use help at a variety of spots and have some good contracts to do so. Jarred Vanderbilt, D'Angelo Russell, Gabe Vincent, and Rui Hachimura all have great contracts to trade, although based on reports it looks like they'd prefer to keep Hachimura and Vincent if they can.

Los Angeles needs to stay healthy and keep playing solid defense. That's how they are going to rise up the standings in the West and give them the best chance to win a championship.

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