It already seems like a long time ago now, but it was a major disappointment when the Lakers limped out of the postseason at the first hurdle. For the second year in a row, LeBron lasted just five games of the postseason and there must be a serious question over whether he will now be able to win another championship before retiring.
That got us thinking about which LA team might win a title soon. The Dodgers are the obvious candidate – even with the unpredictability of the baseball playoffs – so we have decided to omit them from our predictions. There are plenty of other teams representing Los Angeles though, and many of them will feature heavily on sportsbooks, including the best California betting apps each year.
People in this region have become quite used to local teams winning titles over the years but only the Galaxy can claim to be a reigning champion (aside from the Dodgers) at the present time. So, who is going to be next to win a title?
No Hope
Let’s get the worst LA teams out of the way first, shall we? It seems a very long time ago that the Anaheim Ducks won a Stanley Cup. There hasn’t even been a winning season since 2018, which is also the last time the team made the playoffs. Even then it was swept by the Sharks in the first round. The good news is that the Ducks are not the worst team in the NHL But its roster really needs some impact veterans to give it any chance of winning. There is no chance that this team will win a championship any time soon.
It’s bad news for any locals with a soft spot for Anaheim sports teams, as the same goes for the Los Angeles Angels. Its postseason drought is even longer and there isn’t even the chance of Shohei Ohtani pulling out a miracle now, since he moved across town a couple of years ago. Things have gone from bad to worse for the Angels recently, learning that the only real star on the team – Ben Joyce – is set to miss the rest of the season. Local fans should really concentrate on the other team if they want to watch baseball into the Fall.
Long Shots
Annoyingly for LA sports fans, it is this bracket that the majority of our local teams fall into. These are the teams that quite regularly make the playoffs but then do very little to stick around for too long. The Kings, the Clippers, the Rams, the Chargers, and even the Lakers are all guilty of raising hopes and then dashing them far too quickly.
The Lakers and the Clippers should be the ones that are able to break out of this slump, considering the talent both rosters have. The former have arguably the greatest player in the NBA – and also traded for a generational talent this year. Even then they were unable to take the Timberwolves further than five games in the first round,
The Clippers have long flattered to deceive but there is a seriously good roster at this ball club – even with the notable departures in the offseason. With Kawhi Leonard fit, the Clippers probably had more of a chance than the Lakers of going deep into the postseason but lost in the first round for the third year in a row. Harden, Zubac, and Powell – along with Leonard – could do well but it feels as though there are too many variables that need to go right before the Clippers can seriously think about winning a title.
When it comes to football, the Rams seem like having a better chance of getting to the Super Bowl than the Chargers. But neither team are exactly filling their fans with confidence. With Cooper Kupp now gone and Matthew Stafford beginning to show his age, the Rams are a team that is in danger of decline. The Chargers would seem to have the potential to bolster the roster in the offseason but a lot depends on Jim Harbaugh getting the right players in and everything clicking immediately.
The Kings haven’t made it further than the first round of the playoffs for over a decade now, going all the way and winning the Stanley Cup the last time that happened. It might help if they could avoid the Oilers in the first round, after losing to Edmonton for each of the last four years. Maybe then we could have more confidence in the prospect of a third championship.
The LA Galaxy surprised a lot of people by going all the way and claiming the MLS Cup last season and would have been a more likely chance for another title if it wasn’t doing so badly this year. Nothing has gone right so far and although there is a long way to go in the regular season – and anything could happen in the playoffs – a repeat doesn’t seem to be on the cards.
Best Chance
When it comes to the best chance of a local team winning another championship, we have to stay in Major League Soccer. LAFC has been one of the best things to happen to the league in recent years and has already won one title in its short history. This season the team is beating all-comers (apart from the Galaxy, it has to be said) and looks like it could go all the way. When it comes to the best atmosphere at a Los Angeles sports stadium, LAFC regularly takes the crown. It might just be that it wins another actual championship soon as well.
