Clutch your pearls Charles Barkley: The Lakers actually are contenders

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Clutch your pearls Charles Barkley: The Lakers actually are contenders

Melissa Rohlin · NY Post Sports

Tue, Mar 17, 2026 ·

4 min read

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Sorry, Sir Charles.

The Lakers have won six games in a row, including nine of their last 10 contests. Their offense is clicking. Their defense is formidable.

Amid their win-streak, they've beaten multiple teams atop the NBA standings, including the Knicks , Timberwolves , Nuggets and Rockets.

It's time to accept the reality you've been dreading: The Lakers are contenders.

On Saturday, Charles Barkley antagonized Lakers fans by saying he hoped they didn't beat the Nuggets. He said that would be his "worst nightmare" because then he'd have to hear sports shows calling them contenders.

Not only did the Lakers beat the Nuggets in overtime, 127-125, but they then won their next game against the Rockets on Monday, 100-92, holding Kevin Durant to nearly as many field goals (eight) as turnovers (seven).

Over the past two weeks, the Lakers have piled on increasingly impressive wins. It's time to accept the fact that a pattern has formed.

The Lakers win over the Knicks in which they never trailed wasn't an anomaly. Their victory over the Timberwolves wasn't because Anthony Edwards was having an off night, shooting 2-for-15 from the field. Their nail-biter over the Nuggets wasn't luck. And their grind-it-out win over the Rockets wasn't a one-off victory.

The Lakers are good. Perhaps they're even really good.

Something has changed for the team.

Luka Doncic is playing MVP-caliber basketball for the second time this season after his sizzling performance amid the Lakers' 15-4 start. Over the month of March, he's averaging 34.3 points, 9 rebounds and 7.7 assists.

Austin Reaves is being aggressive and has turned into a bonafide star , cementing his Arkansas flag among the elite of the league.

LeBron James has embraced being the team's third option even though he's arguably the greatest player of all-time.

Deandre Ayton is playing with force. Marcus Smart is reminding everyone that he's a former Defensive Player of the Year.

Lakers coach JJ Redick can finally exhale. His long nights in his dark basement poring over film have paid off. Everyone has bought in.

The Lakers are in third place in the Western Conference. They've hit their stride at just the right time. WIth only 14 games remaining, they're one of the top teams in the NBA.

Those are whiplash-inducing sentences considering they were counted out mere weeks ago. After going 4-4 on their eight-game homestand, a purple and gold-stained natural disaster had officially struck Los Angeles .

You know, Doncic wasn't a winner. James was a blight on the Lakers. Reaves was a disappearing act. And former No. 1 overall pick Deandre Ayton didn't even compare to Rockets' center Clint Capela .

Oh, how things have changed.

Now, Doncic is a legitimate MVP-contender. James is a selfless winner for playing behind Doncic and Reaves. Reaves is a sensation. Ayton has looked like DominAyton recently. And Smart has become the hard-nosed defender the Lakers needed.

Of course, it remains questionable whether the Lakers could beat the crème de la crème of the West in a seven-game series. The reigning NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder made them look old and tired last time they met. And it's uncertain whether the Lakers have answers for the 7-foot-4 alien that is Victor Wembanyama and his Spurs .

But the Lakers can no longer be counted out.

They're tough. They're able to adapt. They tallying wins against the best teams in the league.

It's no longer hyperbolic to call them contenders. If everyone keeps starring in their roles, the Lakers could really make some noise in the playoffs.

The four-time NBA champion James obviously knows a thing or two about winning. Doncic carried Dallas to the Finals in 2024 and is desperate to make former Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison regret the day he put his signature on the most shocking trade in NBA history.

Reaves is anxious to play well in the playoffs following his 2025 postseason struggles, especially with a potential max contract awaiting him. Ayton wants to prove he's not a bust. And Smart is ready to show the world what he can do again.

The Lakers aren't just a group of mismatched stars who can't jell anymore. They've sacrificed to make The Big Three shine. They've filled their holes on the defensive end and from beyond the arc, masking their deficits with unyielding effort.

The Lakers have arrived.

Sorry, Sir Charles. We all know the narrative that the Lakers are good is as abhorrent to you as setting foot in San Antonio .

This postseason, looks like you're going to be in for a lot of grief.

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