However, after the Southern California wildfires caused multiple games to be rescheduled, this became not only the most challenging part of the Lakers’ season but also the most challenging stretch for any team this season.
The Lakers just finished playing six games in eight days — including three consecutive back-to-backs — the only such stretch in the NBA. It certainly helped that four of the six games were at home. But two of three back-to-backs were against Denver and Milwaukee — two of the better teams in the league.
Injuries in recent weeks only compounded matters. Rui Hachimura’s left patella tendinopathy has kept him out longer than initially expected. LeBron James suffered a left groin strain two weeks ago in Boston and missed the entire stretch as well, leaving Los Angeles without its two starting forwards and two of its top four scorers.
Because of the increased workload on the rest of the primary rotation, including Luka Dončić, Austin Reaves, Dorian Finney-Smith, Gabe Vincent and Jarred Vanderbilt, the Lakers punted on two games — a close loss in Denver last week and Thursday’s 118-89 blowout home loss to Milwaukee.
“You have to look at it in the big picture and feel good that you go 3-3 in this stretch,” Redick said. “I don’t think the game that exists today in the NBA and the modern NBA player is (built to do this). I wouldn’t be either if this was what I came up in and this was the game that I had to play every night. It’s different than when I first started.
“You’re not built to play six games in eight nights. The game doesn’t allow you to play six games in eight nights. It’s just impossible. … What our guys just went through, it’s difficult.”
The Lakers began the journey as the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference and ended it in the same spot. They’re 3-4 without James — a sign of his importance, to be sure, but far from a death knell.
“I think we did good,” rookie Dalton Knecht said. “Some of us got banged up during that road trip and all these back-to-backs. But I think all of us were going out there fighting every single game, even tonight (against the Bucks).”
The Lakers (43-26) undoubtedly benefited from their opponents’ circumstances. The Suns are a flaming mess. The Spurs are without their two best players, Victor Wembanyama and De’Aaron Fox, for the rest of the season. The Nuggets were without Nikola Jokić and Jamal Murray, though it’s worth noting they had beaten the red-hot Golden State Warriors without those two earlier in the week.
But for the umpteenth time this season, the Lakers showed the resiliency that has become a hallmark, bouncing back from a rough stretch with three consecutive wins — against lesser opponents, which has actually been a weakness for the Lakers in 2025 — until they rested Dončić, Reaves, Finney-Smith and Vanderbilt against the Bucks on Thursday.
As injuries have mounted for the Lakers, they’ve tried to balance their home-court ambitions with preserving their health, prioritizing the latter. The way they see it, being healthier, even as the No. 5 or 6 seed, is better than remaining banged up but earning the No. 2 or 3 seed.
Nonetheless, this stretch has preserved the Lakers’ odds of earning the No. 2 or 3 seed, which would dramatically impact their chances of making a deep playoff run. The Lakers are a dominant home team, with the second-best home record in the conference. Home-court advantage, outside of a potential matchup with the No. 1 Oklahoma City Thunder, could be significant.
“We would all love to have home-court advantage,” Redick said. “It would be nice. And our group has been awesome at home so far. They have. But again, you’ve gotta play the next game and you’ve gotta win the game in front of you. And then, I’ve just seen it too many times. The basketball gods, if you start messing around with things, the basketball gods, they will punish you.”
The Lakers will now close their five-game homestand with a matchup against the Chicago Bulls on Saturday before traveling on a four-game road trip to Orlando, Indiana, Chicago and Memphis.
James and Hachimura remain day-to-day, but Redick said he is “hopeful” they’ll return on Saturday against Chicago, along with the rest of the group.
“They’re all active injuries, and they’re all things that we’ve had to navigate throughout the last seven to 10 days for all these guys,” Redick said. “And I think everybody is day-to-day, including LeBron and Rui. But we knew post-All-Star break that this first three-to-four weeks was gonna be tough. It’s not gonna get any easier. But this is been a very difficult stretch just in terms of the schedule, and our guys have competed and played through a lot of stuff. And that’s just the reality of where we’re at today. We’ve got to continue to manage this stretch.”
The Lakers have the third-toughest remaining schedule, according to Tankathon. They still have three back-to-backs remaining. They still play the Thunder (twice), Houston Rockets (twice), Memphis Grizzlies and Golden State Warriors in games that will be pivotal in the West playoff picture.
But their final 13 games are over 24 days, a much more manageable stretch compared to what they just endured.
“I’m just glad to be on the other side of it and hopefully, going forward, we are healthy and can make a push here,” Redick said.
