Lakers Coach Byron Scott is trying to find right lineup combinations

Losses aren’t the only things piling up for the Lakers.

Different lineups have been employed and discarded by Coach Byron Scott for various reasons, including injuries and a largely ineffective roster.

Twelve players have started for the Lakers this season. At power forward alone, there have been five starters: Carlos Boozer, Ed Davis, Jordan Hill, Tarik Black and Ryan Kelly.

“It’s been a little wild,” Scott acknowledged recently. “But it’s also been fun. ... It’s like that mad scientist trying to figure out what works and what doesn’t, trying to make that potion — this formula works, this doesn’t, you start over.”

But the Lakers are 20-53, possibly headed toward their worst season ever. It can’t be that fun.

“It’s been a lot of fun because now I’m learning a lot about these guys and what they can and what they cannot do,” he added.

Sticking with the science metaphor, it’s been tough to find a perfect solution, one worth finding a patent for, Scott said.

“When I can find one that I can bottle, I’ll let you guys know,” he said. “I’m just looking at different combinations just to see how guys react with one another. That’s the biggest thing, obviously is for us to continue to play hard. For me, it’s just evaluating the talent that we have.”

Boozer said he would return Wednesday against New Orleans after a five-game layoff to evaluate younger post men, he was told. He has also been dealing with an upper-respiratory infection.

It was unclear if Davis would return Wednesday from a more difficult-to-explain two-game absence, one that disappointed the upcoming free agent because he wanted to play all 82 games this season.

The Lakers are listing point guard Jeremy Lin as questionable for Wednesday’s game after he missed two games because of an upper-respiratory infection.

LAKERS VS. NEW ORLEANS

When: 7:30 PDT Wednesday.

Where: Staples Center.

On the air: TV: TWC SportsNet, TWC Deportes; Radio: 710, 1330.

Records: Lakers 20-53; Pelicans 39-34.

Record vs. Pelicans: 0-3.

Update: The Pelicans remain in the hunt for the eighth and final Western Conference playoff spot, though they’ll need to move quickly because they trail Oklahoma City by 2¿¿ games. The Lakers have never been swept in the season series by New Orleans since the Pelicans’ franchise began play in 2002-03. The Lakers have not been competitive with the Pelicans this season, losing by an average of 13.3 points.

Follow Mike Bresnahan on Twitter @Mike_Bresnahan