Putting L.A. Lakers' Remaining Schedule Under the Microscope

The Los Angeles Lakers have just six games left in the regular season, and all they have to do to make the playoffs is beat everybody they have left to play.

At 40-36, Los Angeles is a half-game ahead of the Utah Jazz, who sit 40-37 with five games to play. The best Los Angeles can do is 46-36, while Utah's best will only result in a 45-37 finish.

The Dallas Mavericks are three games off the pace at 37-39. Any combination of three losses or three Lakers' wins would mean the end of the season for the Mavs, so they're in a dire situation.

Los Angeles has games left against some stiff competition, and while they do control their destiny, Utah has a great chance of taking the final spot as well, as they own the tiebreaker over L.A.

With the pressure on, let's take a look at what the Lakers can expect the rest of the way, and what they'll have to do to win each game.

Sunday April 7th @ Los Angeles Clippers

Head-to-Head Record: Clippers 3, Lakers 0

Clippers' Record: 50-26

The Lakers Win if...

The Clippers continue to struggle.

Only three teams have won each of their games against the Lakers this season, and the Clippers will be the only team to have the chance to take them down in four meetings.

Unfortunately for the Clippers, their last month of basketball hasn't mirrored their first five, and it seems as if they've gotten lazy.

The Lakers can use their drive to get into the playoffs to beat down the recently careless Clippers, but that might not be the case on Sunday afternoon.

The Lakers Lose if...

The Clippers become vindictive because of their years of inferiority.

While the Clippers have struggled over the past month, they still seem to have that edge when they play the Lakers (which last happened on February 14th).

The Clippers have won by five, 10 and 24 points this season, so it seems as if the Lakers will have their hands full.

Tuesday, April 9th vs. New Orleans Hornets

Head-to-Head Record: Lakers 3, Hornets 0

Hornets' Record: 26-50

The Lakers Win if...

They get down by 25 points or fewer.

This seems to be one of the few games down the stretch that should be chalked up in favor of the Lakers beforehand.

Sure, with this Lakers team it's dangerous to make assumptions, but with the Lakers playing at a decent clip as of late and the playoffs just over the horizon, I don't think they'll have any trouble getting up and feeling motivated against a subpar team.

The Lakers Lose if...

They get down by 26 points.

Of course, that was about the same thought we had about the Lakers on March 6th when they came back from a 25-point deficit the last time these teams met.

If they get into another big hole against this team, it could just be the backbreaker, and the wheels could finally fall off this shaky caravan.

Wednesday, April 10th @ Portland Trail Blazers

Head-to-Head Record: Lakers 2, Trail Blazers 1

Blazers' Record: 33-43

The Lakers Win if...

There's a post presence.

With Dwight Howard playing a solid game both offensively and defensively, the Trail Blazers will have to rely on their perimeter shooting to have a chance to win.

They've shot extremely poorly from the three-point line (just 26 percent) over the past three games, all against teams with a solid post presence on defense.

Given that, and some shots falling on their own end, the Lakers should be able to pull this one out.

The Lakers Lose if...

Portland's inside-outside game wakes up.

It seems that whenever Damian Lillard and LaMarcus Aldridge have a solid game together, the Trail Blazers are nearly impossible to stop.

Throw in some rebounding from J.J. Hickson, a solid game from Nicolas Batum and help from the continually underrated Wesley Matthews and this team is a handful, so long as you don't look at the guys riding the pine.

The Lillard-Aldridge combination always tends to be an interesting one, while Kobe Bryant has had three games against Portland in which he's scored at least 27 points.

Friday, April 12th vs. Golden State Warriors

Head-to-Head Record: Lakers 2, Warriors 1

Warriors' Record: 44-32

The Lakers Win if...

They play four quarters.

The last time these teams met also happened to be the first win of the season series for the Golden State Warriors, all thanks to an explosive first half.

The Lakers made little cuts into the huge Golden State lead throughout, and even made an attempt at another big comeback in the fourth quarter, but they were just too late kick-starting their comeback machine.

If the Lakers had played a four-quarter game, they would have won. Instead, they were lazy in the first half and a win became impossible.

The Lakers Lose if...

Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson drop the rain.

In the Warriors' only win over the Lakers this season, everybody watched as Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry combined for 47 points with nine combined three-pointers.

The Los Angeles perimeter defense didn't show up until midway through the third quarter. By that point, it was too late. Klay and Steph had made their presence felt.

Sunday, April 14th vs. San Antonio Spurs

Head-to-Head Record: Spurs 2, Lakers 0

Spurs' Record: 56-20

The Lakers Win if...

San Antonio sits everybody.

Well, I probably shouldn't call that an absolute, but it seems pretty likely that the Lakers will be able to take care of the Spurs if Gregg Popovich rests his starters.

This close to the end of the season, and with a playoff spot on the line, Los Angeles, and Kobe Bryant specifically, won't let a bunch of bench players beat them.

The Lakers Lose if...

Pop is feeling frisky.

In a game like this, if the Lakers are still in a position where a loss would give the Utah Jazz a leg up in the race, it's possible that Popovich decides to stick his toes in the water and play spoiler for the Lakers.

While Pop has shown that he doesn't care about playoff positioning at times, he has shown that there's a bit of quirky fun in his brain. He did decide to employ the Hack-a-Shaq just five seconds into the 2009 season.

If he throws everybody into the starting lineup and they're playing well, he could just leave them in the game, hoping to spoil the Lakers' season.

Wednesday, April 17th vs. Houston Rockets

Head-to-Head Record: Rockets 2, Lakers 1

Rockets' Record: 43-33

The Lakers Win if...

Houston has nothing left to fight for. It'll be the final game of the season for both teams, and the Rockets have two things on their mind with a few weeks left in the season. Golden State is just a game ahead of them in the standings, while the Lakers are just three games back.

Of course, the Lakers don't need the Rockets to play for nothing to beat them, it's just their best-case scenario.

Los Angeles has struggled with Houston's fast-paced offense in its two losses. But in its win, it did so because it made shots. Shots have to fall efficiently for the Mike D'Antoni offense to work, and Houston has to realize that it can't defend the perimeter.

The Lakers Lose if...

Houston outruns them.

In two meetings in Houston this year, Los Angeles has watched as the Rockets' offense whizzes right by and leaves it in the dust.

Three-pointers falling and James Harden getting into the lane can be kryptonite to Los Angeles' Superman.