re: Good or Bad for NBA cause if in-season champs miss the play-in?

If it was anther team it would be good for the league because those are games that otherwise wouldn't have been watched by as many people. For example if it was TOR vs SA that's good for the league because otherwise no one is watching that game. But when it's the Lakers it really doesn't matter because that game was going to get a national audience regardless of who they were playing or when.