“Officially LA has 21 games left, but let’s face it: It’s a wrap” - Chris Mannix believes the question has turned to whether the LA Lakers can salvage next season

The LA Lakers lost again Monday night, falling 109-104 to the Dallas Mavericks and further dashing their hopes of gaining ground in the Western Conference. They are currently in ninth place but have the New Orleans Pelicans and Portland Trail Blazers on their heels, both of whom are only two games behind.

The Lakers are fighting to make the play-in tournament, and the team is heading in the wrong direction. Los Angeles is 6-15 since Jan. 9. They have had four three-game losing skids and have not won consecutive games in that span.

Their experiment with bringing in Russell Westbrook and a bunch of older, experienced players has backfired as the younger teams are running rings around them.

With each disappointing loss, their chances of glory have waned, and some are already looking forward to next season. ESPN writer Brian Windhorst believes the LA Lakers should go all out and start rebuilding. That would mean trading LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and perhaps Westbrook.

Senior writer for Sports Illustrated Chris Mannix also believes it is the end of the road for the LA Lakers. In a recent publication, he emphasized how deep a hole the Lakers are in and wondered if they can salvage next season, stating:

"Officially L.A. has 21 games left, but let’s face it: It’s a wrap. The Lakers are a few months from a reckoning. They could make the playoffs — if the season ended today, L.A. would face New Orleans in the play-in — but the Lakers are going nowhere."

He added:

"They are old. They look tired. Westbrook doesn’t fit. Davis hasn’t been the same since a superlative performance in the bubble. LeBron is still LeBron, but at 37 he can’t carry them."

After listing out the various precarious situations the Lakers are in, Mannix concluded:

"James wasn’t ready to concede anything Tuesday. 'We got to try to win one basketball game right now,' James said. But even he can’t pull the Lakers out of this, L.A. is sinking, quickly. The question isn’t whether the Lakers can salvage this season, but the next."

If the LA Lakers take the rebuilding route, they will undoubtedly be left out of championship conversations for a while. That will mean trading James because it will be abominable to have this generation's greatest player on your roster and not be looking to contend for a championship.

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The LA Lakers are seven games under .500

Austin Reaves #15 and the LA Lakers react after a 3-point basket

Things are not looking good for the LA Lakers, as their struggles have continued late in the season. There was hope that Westbrook would hit his second-half form, but that has not happened yet.

The bulk of the heavy lifting is still left to LeBron, and at 37, it has been difficult for him to maintain the same level of intensity every other night for 48 minutes.

Since play resumed after the All-Star break, the Lakers are yet to win a game. They first lost the Battle of LA for the third time this season and followed that up with a humiliating 28-point loss against the Pelicans. Their most recent defeat came at the hands of the Mavericks as they fell short in completing a comeback late in the game.

As things stand, the Lakers have no idea where their next win will come from. Team captain LeBron James has said that they will take it one game at a time, declaring that he will always have a chance until he is "12 feet under."

If the Lakers do not start getting some much-needed victories, they could entirely miss out on postseason action. Playing two games in the play-in tournament will also be an extra load this aged Lakers team would like to avoid.