"They're vulnerable, they're not the same team as last year, Kobe Bryant is shooting only 21-for-70 during his last three contests, and without Andrew Bynum they can't win a championship."
And during this last month, I have sat back and soaked in all the negativity that was being spoken.
I thought to myself, "Come on, it's the Los Angeles Lakers we're talking about here! They have arguably the greatest basketball player in NBA history on their roster, how can they lose?"
Well congratulations to all those people, here's the article that you've been waiting for.
Yesterday, we found out that the Lakers will be matched up against the Oklahoma City Thunder for the first round of the 2010 NBA Playoffs.
It's certainly a relief for LA that they won't be facing the San Antonio Spurs, who are 2-2 against the Lakers in the regular season (the Spurs two wins have been by an average of 19.5 points).
More importantly, the Lakers dodged a bullet with not pairing up against the Portland Trail Blazers in the first round of the playoffs.
The Blazers hold a 2-1 record against Kobe and company this season, beating the Lakers this last Sunday at the Staples Center without their star Brandon Roy in the second half.
While it would be even more nail biting for the Lakers to compete against one of the two teams mentioned above, the Thunder have just as good of a chance to make history in the short weeks to come.
It's obvious that the Lakers lack a true point guard that can simply distribute the ball and hit the open jumper.
At the age of 35, Derek Fisher should not be the starting point guard for a defending championship team, simply put.
Most of his opponents are much younger and quicker, creating an instant mismatch n...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
