Spring Break
Sizing Up The NBA's 'Wild West'
John Frascella
Issue date: 2/20/08 Section: Sports
The Lakers steal Pau Gasol from the Grizzlies, then the Suns make a controversial move for Shaquille O'Neal and now the Mavericks acquire Jason Kidd. Quite simply, the Western Conference race has become an expensive front office game of "anything you can do, I can do better."
Considering the significant player movement, the big question is: Who will represent the West in the NBA Finals?
As difficult as it is to pick against the consistent and reliable Spurs, I'm shaking things up and putting my money on the Lakers.
Kobe Bryant is still the league's best all-around player and when dominant youngster Andrew Bynum returns from injury, the Lakers will boast the premier three-man frontcourt in the NBA. Bynum will man the middle with Gasol alongside at the power forward, while the versatile Lamar Odom will slide down to his natural small forward position.
After single-handedly carrying his lackluster teammates into the playoffs the past two seasons, Bryant can finally dump some of the scoring load on a legitimate supporting cast. The Lakers have an exceptional bench featuring sharpshooters Sasha Vujacic, Jordan Farmar and Vladimir Radmanovic, all-purpose forwards Luke Walton and Trevor Ariza, and active big men Ronny Turiaf and Chris Mihm.
Phil Jackson is one of the best head coaches of all time and he must be salivating at the idea of a 10th NBA title. Expect him to continue to push all the right buttons; the only thing that will stop the "Zen-Master" from getting back to the Finals is an in-season surgery on Bryant's right pinkie.
If Bryant can hold off the surgery until the offseason, the Lakers have the most depth and the best shot at winning the West. It doesn't hurt to have the league's top closer and clutch performer, either.
But, if Bryant is eventually forced to have the surgery, the wily Spurs will undoubtedly be prepared to capitalize. Bryant won't be his dominant self after six weeks of midseason rehab, in which case San Antonio would become the favorite.
Considering the significant player movement, the big question is: Who will represent the West in the NBA Finals?
As difficult as it is to pick against the consistent and reliable Spurs, I'm shaking things up and putting my money on the Lakers.
Kobe Bryant is still the league's best all-around player and when dominant youngster Andrew Bynum returns from injury, the Lakers will boast the premier three-man frontcourt in the NBA. Bynum will man the middle with Gasol alongside at the power forward, while the versatile Lamar Odom will slide down to his natural small forward position.
After single-handedly carrying his lackluster teammates into the playoffs the past two seasons, Bryant can finally dump some of the scoring load on a legitimate supporting cast. The Lakers have an exceptional bench featuring sharpshooters Sasha Vujacic, Jordan Farmar and Vladimir Radmanovic, all-purpose forwards Luke Walton and Trevor Ariza, and active big men Ronny Turiaf and Chris Mihm.
Phil Jackson is one of the best head coaches of all time and he must be salivating at the idea of a 10th NBA title. Expect him to continue to push all the right buttons; the only thing that will stop the "Zen-Master" from getting back to the Finals is an in-season surgery on Bryant's right pinkie.
If Bryant can hold off the surgery until the offseason, the Lakers have the most depth and the best shot at winning the West. It doesn't hurt to have the league's top closer and clutch performer, either.
But, if Bryant is eventually forced to have the surgery, the wily Spurs will undoubtedly be prepared to capitalize. Bryant won't be his dominant self after six weeks of midseason rehab, in which case San Antonio would become the favorite.
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