"I'm willing to bet" - Stephen A. Smith makes bold prediction about LeBron James-Luka Doncic's ceiling in Lakers title bid

With the newly formed partnership between LeBron James and Luka Doncic, the LA Lakers's potential is one of the biggest questions in the NBA. While they have shown some early success, their tandem is still untested where it truly matters the most — the Playoffs.

Fans won't have to wait too long to find out if this current iteration of the Lakers could achieve a deep Playoff run. The postseason is not too far away and LA looks like they'd be a lock for one of the eight spots.

On Monday's episode of "The Skip Bayless Show," Stephen A. Smith shared how confident he was in the Lakers when Bayless asked if the former thought the LA had what it took to beat the OKC Thunder.

"I'm willing to bet they're gonna get to the Conference Finals," Stephen A. Smith said. "Can they beat Oklahoma City? Yes. Will they? Not so sure."

While they aren't the only threat, the OKC Thunder are perhaps the biggest roadblock to the Lakers and anyone in the West. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (32.9 points, 6.2 apg and 5.1 rpg) has led the Thunder to the best record in the West at 53-11.

LeBron James and Co. are the second seed but nowhere near Oklahoma City in terms of record, with 40 wins and 22 losses.

The Lakers are still at risk of dropping a few seeds in the coming weeks. The Denver Nuggets (41-23) are not too far behind and even the Memphis Grizzlies (40-24) could overtake them.

Injuries coming into the home stretch of the regular season make it difficult for LA to hold on to the second seed.

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LeBron James could miss a few weeks with an injury to his left groin

The LA Lakers's roster has been marred with injuries and were dealt another blow on Saturday. LeBron James exited midway through the fourth quarter of the game against the Boston Celtics with a reported left groin strain. Per initial reports, he could miss one to two weeks.

In addition to missing King James, Jaxson Hayes, Rui Hachimura, and Dorian Finney-Smith are also listed among LA's injured players. These absences could hurt their record these coming weeks and affect potential matchups in the Playoffs.

If they somehow remain the second seed, they could guarantee home-court advantage and would have the luxury of facing weaker teams in earlier rounds. However, dropping further in the standings will make the postseason more challenging.