^^ That's why AD is still the missing link in the puzzle for the Lakers.

He is still on the injured list so they are terribly missing his services right now as others that is expected to help Lebron is not stepping up or very inconsistent.

Only Lebron is doing very hard for the team, but we all know that he can't do it by himself. Malik Monk only scored 7 points , THT 5 points. And those two should be like at least 15 each in this game to help Lebron.

He is currently 5th in the rankings because of lack of stats while leadership is not part of it. Nikola Jokic is on top with Giannis next to it and Joel Embiid.
These 3 guys could sure put a lot of numbers in rebounds, points, and a bit of assists. I think if CP3 badly want to win the MVP race he will need to improve his assists statistics but I doubt it will happen while Coach Monty is controlling his minutes to avoid injuries. They are on the top seed now and they won't need to force anything for a win. Preserve their strength, health, and avoid injuries as much as they can will be their goal in preparation for a championship. I think that's more important because they will win as a team rather than for an individual award.
Thank you for making it clear.

The LA Lakers is now again placed 8th spot on the WCF, and their loss today against the Heat was somehow expected as they are still struggling to find their rhythm and the other players were still inconsistent to contribute every game they had. The Lakers are bit lucky because Tyler Herro was out due to the health and safety protocol as Herro could also make some difference in the game.
AD's absence was really felt as time goes by, and same here, I was expecting that Davis could return today against the Heats but sadly that wasn't the case. We'll see some progress and updates about him in the following days or weeks.

Miami Heat - LA Lakers game was really delightful and Heat won the game just as I expected. It was a 113-107 victory and Heat totally deserved it by a great team play. Lebron was Lakers' best as always. He got 33 pts, 11 reb. This time, Westbrook also played well and he got 24 pts, 9 reb, 9 ast. He was really close to making a triple-double. But Lakers still lost the game as the rest of the players couldn't contribute too much. Heat have captured the lead in the conference again by this win and I really wonder what they will do in the playoffs.

AD is like the "Night and Shining Armor" of the Lakers right now where if he comes back, the whole team will be winning more games. Many are waiting for him and hoping that if he comes back, the Lakers will be a better team but I'm not expecting for him to contribute that much like the game style of the team will change if he comes back. Lets just put Klay as an example. He came back but he didn't contribute that much and I think it will be the same with AD.

I know that there are many Laker fans here that are also fan of AD but even he comes back, I don't think that the Lakers will be on a higher spot than where they are right now. Yes they need him but how can you rely on a player who is injury prone. His proneness to injuries is hurting the whole Lakers team and many knows that. Well, I'm not downing AD as well and he is an all-star player but even he comes back what the team needs more is chemistry.

Now we saw what the Lakers can only do if Lebron and Westbrook are the only ones producing the points, they really need Davis to operate inside as he can also drop an average of 20 points per game and that's big enough as a contribution for the success of the team.
He was a gametime decision on this game, maybe next game he will completely return.
https://www.silverscreenandroll.com/2022/1/22/22896510/lakers-injury-report-anthony-davis-working-out-without-knee-brace-video-timeline

If AD is fully fit to play the same type of game, the kind of lift that Lakers need from him.

They can win more or the chance of winning each game is higher. He's the big contributor after LeBron, if he can play
that same intensity and I will agree that they still have that great chance.

So far, the team still lacking of supporting roles, they are trying but not enough to win. both LeBron and Westbrook play
great, but Butler and Robinson give them that same intensity.

There has someone to be blamed, when the team is not working well then most likely the problem is the coach because he has the authority to make a command for the success of the team. LA Lakers is a team, although they have Lebron and Westbrook, they need to work as a team in order for them to become a championship team.

I agree with Lakers cannot compete with strong team as they should on the paper but they also managed to have a 32-13 run at the 4th quarter to cut down the big lead of Heat but they couldn't just finish strong. Even though Russell Westbrook had almost a triple double, with 9 rebounds and 9 assists, I still feel like he is the missing force in Lakers's greatness. If he could play more productive, I feel like Lakers can do much better. Of course if AD comes back strong and they manage to have a good team chemistry, Lakers still can be a force to be reckoned with, although I don't see any possibility of a championship.