The race for the third seed in the Western Conference is really starting to heat with only a few games remaining in the NBA regular season. It was the consensus of many NBA analysts that the Los Angeles Lakers had that seed in the bag a few weeks ago as it seemed that no team could catch them from four to eight, but now the crosscourt rival Los Angeles Clippers are in the mix with just a half a game between the two teams after Wednesday night’s wins.

Ever since the vetoed Chris Paul trade before the beginning of the NBA regular season, the Clippers and the Lakers have been connected and seemingly destined to clash sooner or later. As if the heated matchups in the preseason weren’t entertaining enough, every single showdown or Battle for L.A. lived up to the hype during the regular season.

Unfortunately for the Clippers, the Lakers has been one step ahead the entire way and for good reason with the veteran experience and leadership on the team. Since the shin injury to Kobe Bryant, there has been speculation that the Clippers might be able to slip into the third seed before the end of the season. Despite Kobe stuck on the sideline in GQ suits, the Lakers have been surging behind the impressive play of Andrew Bynum, Metta World Peace and Pau Gasol.

With five wins in seven games without the Black Mamba, the Lakers have proven that they are a legitimate NBA title contender and will continue to sit at number three in the West until the Clippers can catch them slipping.

In the last three games of the regular season, the Lakeshow will take on the San Antonio Spurs, Oklahoma City Thunder and the Sacramento Kings. There is a good chance that the Lakers might lose all three of these games, but at the same time they could win out.

Needless to say, things will start to get really interesting in the City of Angels with the NBA regular season quickly coming to a close.

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