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LeBron James Sends Three-Word Message After Loss to Warriors
Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

With just six games left in the regular season, the Los Angeles Lakers are fighting to stay out of the NBA Play-In Tournament.  

In the bloodbath that is the Western Conference, only two games separate the Denver Nuggets, who currently are the No. 3 seed, from the Minnesota Timberwolves, who have the No. 7 seed.

With a chance to give themselves some wiggle room, the Los Angeles Lakers faced off against the Golden State Warriors on Thursday. The Dubs ended up winning by a score of 123-116, which means the No. 4 seed Lakers are only one game ahead of them in the standings. 

Although it wasn't the performance they wanted, LeBron James still used the game to send some positivity and possible motivation for himself and his team on Instagram.

"Iron sharpens Iron! ," wrote James in a caption of a picture of him and Steph Curry.

The 40-year-old James did all he could on offense as he continues to nurse a left groin issue. He finished the game with a team-high 33 points, nine assists and also grabbed five rebounds.

James was also able to end his dry spell from deep, as he went 5-of-8 from three, marking the first time in a month he's made more than two threes in a game.

With the race for the top six seeds in the Western Conference being so tight, the Lakers will really need to figure everything out real quick, as their schedule does them no favors. According to Tankathon, the Lakers rank No. 3 in remaining strength of schedule.

Three of the team's next four games are on the road, with two of those games against the Oklahoma City Thunder, who have the best record (64-12) in the NBA. On top of that, their final home game of the season is against the Houston Rockets who are currently holding onto the No. 2 seed in the West.

Needless to say, this will be a pivotal final stretch.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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