NBA Playoffs: Ranking 8 hottest and most dangerous teams clicking at right time

7. Los Angeles Lakers

Since February 1, the Los Angeles Lakers have been one of the best teams in the league. Over that span, the Lakers are 23-10. Narrowing it down to the last few weeks, the Lakers are 11-3 in their last 14 games. This is a team that is certainly playing some of their best basketball of the season at the right time. All that said, the biggest reason why they're not ranked higher on this list is because of the difficult road that they'll have if they earn the 7th spot in the NBA Playoffs. If they beat the New Orleans Pelicans in their Play-In Tournament game, they'll have to take on the Denver Nuggets in the first round.

I understand to be the champs that you have to beat the champs, I'm not sure this team wants to see the Nuggets this early in the postseason. Nevertheless, that's how the bracket unfolded for the Lakers.

But with the way the Lakers have been playing of late, they may have a shot to surprise the masses in a potential first-round series against Denver. If nothing else, a rematch of last year's Western Conference Finals should provide plenty of theatrics.