The defending NBA champions will have to endure even more time without their dynamic duo.
Lakers star forward LeBron James, who was forced to leave Saturday's game against the Atlanta Hawks early with a high right ankle sprain, could be sidelined for several weeks, according to a recent report from The Athletic's Shams Charania. James' injury comes at a rather inopportune time for Los Angeles, as they've also been without All-Star forward Anthony Davis since Feb. 14 due to a right calf strain.
Considering that the team has no definitive timetable for the return of either James or Davis, it's safe to assume the Lakers will drop in the Western Conference standings in the coming days and weeks.
But don't press the panic button yet, Lakers fans. As long as the team treads water while James and Davis out, they'll still be able to reach their desired destination, according to JR.
"This is tough. There's nothing easy here for the Los Angeles Lakers when you want to talk about a repeat," JR said on CBS Sports Radio's JR SportBrief show on Monday. "But I will say this: I still believe the Lakers will be in the playoffs. I still believe that they'll be competitive. And I think if you have to look at anything, if you want to try to find a silver lining, if you want to try to find the bright side, they may not want to [be competitive]. They're going to have to gear back up. But for Anthony Davis and LeBron James, I think it's actually good that they're sitting down.
"I think the Lakers will still be in a solid position. They may not be Top-4, probably not. But I still think they'll get into the tournament, especially when you look at the teams. There are a lot of teams close to .500, pretty much rounding out the Top-10. The Lakers will get to the playoffs, and if they're healthy, I still believe that they'll be fine."
Entering Tuesday, the Lakers (28-15) rank third overall in the Western Conference standings, and are one game behind the Phoenix Suns (28-13) for first place in the Pacific Division.
You can follow the JR SportBrief show on Twitter @JRSportBrief and Tom Hanslin @TomHanslin.