No. 2. Los Angeles Lakers

You cannot talk about championship contenders in the Western Conference without mentioning the Los Angeles Lakers! The defending champions have definitely faced a ton of adversity over the last month or so, as LeBron James has been sidelined with a high ankle sprain and Anthony Daivs has been sidelined with a mysterious calf injury, but all-in-all, when this team is healthy, they are one of the best teams in the league. 

The Lakers are one of the best defensive teams in the league and after Andre Drummond was bought out from his contract with the Cavaliers, the Lakers agreed to a deal with him for the remainder of the season. So now, fully healthy, the Lakers have James, Davis, Drummond, Schroder and a slew of key role players in Kyle Kuzma, Montrezl Harrell, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Markieff Morris, among others as well. 

This team definitely has what it takes personnel wise to win back-to-back titles, but health is going to be a huge factor in this for them. LeBron James should be back by the end of April as he recovers from his high ankle sprain, but Anthony Davis is a huge question mark right now. 

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There have been rumors that AD could return within the next couple of weeks, but there has been no word on Anthony Davis and his injury other than that he has been dealing with a “calf strain.” NBA fans have heard this narrative before, as this was the same classification the Warriors used with Kevin Durant’s injury during their 2019 playoff run to the NBA Finals, which ended in them losing to the Toronto Raptors in six games and Kevin Durant coming back only to tear his Achilles. 

The Lakers are going to be careful with their two star players when they return from injuries and Anthony Davis’ injury situation is definitely something to watch down the stretch of the season, but fully healthy, the Lakers are going to be a tough team to beat in the playoffs once again.