Stephen A. Smith makes a bold statement about LeBron James and crew: "I've got the Lakers as a legitimate force"

In LeBron James' absence since Feb. 26, the LA Lakers have stayed hot. They have won eight of their past 11 games since Feb. 15 and are in a play-in tournament position in the Western Conference.

Anthony Davis, D'Angelo Russell, Rui Hachimura, Dennis Schroeder, Jared Vanderbilt and Malik Beasley have clicked at the right time. The Lakers are a much-improved unit compared to their roster at the beginning of the season.

"I've got the Lakers as a legitimate force in the Western Conference," ESPN's Stephen A. Smith said. "I still think they got a shot at the sixth seed. I'm not ruling out anything right now."

The Lakers, because of tiebreakers, are 10th in the Western Conference but are among three teams with a 34-35 record. The OKC Thunder are eighth, while the Dallas Mavericks are ninth.

The Minnesota Timberwolves (35-34) are seventh.

The Golden State Warriors, who are fifth, and LA Clippers, who are sixth, each have a 36-33 record.

If the Lakers, with 13 games left on their schedule, can finish in sixth place, they'll avoid the play-in tournament and qualify for the playoffs. If they can finish seventh or eighth, they'll be in the play-in tournament and only need to win one game.

A team that finishes ninth or 10th must win two play-in tournament games to reach the playoffs. In the play-in tournament, the No. 7 seed hosts the No. 8 seed, with the winner advancing to the playoffs. Meanwhile, the No. 9 seed hosts the No. 10 seed, with the loser eliminated and the winner facing the loser of the 7-8 game on the road for the last playoff berth.

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LeBron James' return status

As far as the timeline for LeBron James' return, NBA insider Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium said on FanDuel TV:

“The Lakers are bracing as if he’s gonna need most, if not all, of the remainder of the regular season at least to ramp up potentially to come back on the court.”

With the much-anticipated return of LeBron James for the LA Lakers, things could look even more interesting as the team has looked impressive with a 5-3 record since his foot injury while playing the Dallas Mavericks on Feb. 26.

Anthony Davis has been superb, averaging 28.1 points and 13.9 rebounds in the eight-game stretch without James.

AD is also supported by a revamped roster led by D'Angelo Russell. He dropped 28 points on 10-for-17 shooting, including 5-for-8 from 3-point range against the Toronto Raptors in his return from injury to secure a 122-112 win on Friday. He followed that by scoring 33 points on 13-for-19 shooting (6-for-11 on 3-pointers) in a 112-108 loss to the New York Knicks on Sunday.

Similar to Russell and Davis' elite level of play lately, the Lakers have received quality contributions in LeBron James' absence from the rest of the players on their revamped roster.

Malik Beasley has provided a scoring punch with Russell in the starting backcourt tandem. Jared Vanderbilt has been an energy provider as he improves the Lakers' defensive tenacity. Over their past 10 games, the Lakers have a defensive rating of 109.3, an impressive leap from before reshaping the roster.

As for the second unit, Dennis Schroder has provided scoring. Meanwhile, Rui Hachimura and Austin Reeves have improved the Lakers' spacing and offensive options as both players provide good shooting.

With LeBron James working his way back into the LA Lakers' lineup, it has given the fans something to be excited about as the team looks this good without its All-Star. The team just has to hold the fort down long enough until he returns.