Lakers legend Magic Johnson predicts Steph Curry and LeBron James to face off yet again in West Final

The playoff picture in the Western Conference hasn't been fully set yet, but one LA Lakers legend already has a prediction. At this stage, only the first seed has been decided in the West. There's still a chance that LA ties the Houston Rockets for the second seed, and there's still no assurance which squads will end up as play-in teams.

Despite that, five-time Lakers champion Magic Johnson already sees how the postseason will turn out. He believes that if the right scenario is met, fans will once again be treated to a classic playoff duel between LeBron James and Steph Curry.

Johnson shared this prediction on X (formerly Twitter).

"I predict that if the Warriors and the Lakers end up in opposite brackets, they’ll be playing each other in the Western Conference Finals," Johnson tweeted. "It’ll be must-see-TV in the East and the West!"

As Magic Johnson said, both teams will need to secure the right seeding for this to happen. If the postseason began today, LA and Golden State would meet in the first round as the third and sixth seeds.

If the Warriors fell to the seventh seed with LA maintaining the third, their only chance of meeting becomes in the second round.

The only way for the Lakers and the Warriors to meet in the Western Conference finals is for one team to end up fourth, fifth or eighth. Meanwhile, the other has to finish second, third, sixth or seventh.

---

The LA Lakers managed to squeak past the Golden State Warriors last time they battled in the playoffs

The last time Steph Curry and LeBron James faced off in the playoffs was in 2023, and they met in the conference semifinals. Sixth-seeded Golden State beat the No. 3-seeded Sacramento Kings in the opening round. Meanwhile, the seventh-seeded LA Lakers upset the Memphis Grizzlies, setting up their battle.

It was a back-and-forth series, going all the way to six games before a winner was decided. The first three games were a see-saw affair as LA won Game 1 (117-112), Golden State struck back in Game 2 (127-100) and the favor shifted back to the Lakers in Game 3 (127-97).

Game 4 was the closest in the series as James and company escaped by only three points (104-101). The Warriors managed to secure Game 5 by a landslide (121-106) but LA returned the favor in Game 6 with a 122-101 victory to close the series.