The Family: Playoffs Preview

With the regular season just about history, it’s time to turn our attention toward the Greatest Show On Earth, aka the postseason. Two months of intense desire, amazing finishes, and furious battles. The games are played with the sure knowledge that anything less than full effort means a premature end to championship dreams.

Let’s begin our look ahead with the team that came up just short last season, and is gearing up to erase that bitter ending from their collective memory—the Los Angeles Lakers. Showtime is back on the coast, as the #1 seed out west is favored to make it back to the ultimate round.

Leading the way…well, you already know about Kobe Bryant. Great talent, sure, but also an incredible competitive streak, a ferocious defender, and a player who can will his team to victory, either in a game or a series. Simply put, Kobe has to be accounted for at all times, even when he’s taking a breather on the sideline—just his glare from the bench gets his teammates motivated.

One of those sidekicks is critical to L.A. making that leap to winning it all. Andrew Bynum was just shoving his way into the elite big man category when he went down with a knee injury. Fortunately, it wasn’t as serious as the one he suffered last season, when he missed that showdown with Boston. Bynum has made his return, and should provide the missing piece to the puzzle in the paint. L.A. was brutalized inside by the Green Machine last year—that won’t happen with Bynum around.

The Bryant and Bynum combo isn’t all L.A. has to offer. Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom were pushed around pretty good by Boston’s bigs last year, and they are eager for redemption. Gasol has been berserk this campaign, averaging just shy of 20 and 10. Thursday night, with Bynum back and occupying defenders, Pau pounded Denver to the tune of 27 points and 19 rebounds, his third double-double in four games. Odom is always a double-double threat every night, too, showing a rare ball-handling, shooting, post-up versatility. More importantly, the tandem has taken the opportunity to establish more of an inside presence in Bynum’s absence. That’s some serious size and length L.A. can throw at teams when all three are playing, and playing well.

Another player who will be more of a factor this time around is Trevor Ariza. The 6’8” forward has given his team a little of everything this year—a scoring option, solid defense, smart rebounding, and a step up in “want-to.” L.A. has depth to spare, and Ariza is the best of the subs.

Nothing is guaranteed in this league, but it will be a surprise if the purple and gold aren’t in the final two.

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