Lakers got another win, the thing is that teams around them are not doing that much worse neither, so they can't climb up the spots, they are playing at 50%+ most of the time and not having any big losing streaks, in fact getting a few good short win streaks as well and yet they are still not getting any higher, all because teams around them are getting wins too. Like how Dallas just got away with a win over Denver for example.
I think there isn't really any rush to do better neither, because they know they will probably finish 9th, Warriors are not looking like they will climb up, so that means at 9th place they could just place themselves at 8th place with a win at play-in and they could just hope for the best against OKC.
With few games left for the season and with news that Vanderbilt, Vincent, and Wood are out for the remainder of the season, It will be a tough challenge for the Lakers to keep their record or go up in the standings since those players are some of the key players for the Lakers, especially Vando and Wood. The presence of both of them on the defensive end will surely be missed.
What the Lakers need to do is keep the pace, and of course, do not lose games. They hope to avoid any more injuries and win the play-in. The most critical aspect of this end-season stretch is who they are facing in the play-in. If it's the Warriors, maybe they do have a chance, but if it's the Kings, I don't know about that; AD is 0-10 against Sabonis. We don't know when that streak will be stopped, but as of the moment, it will continue.