L.A. Lakers: 5 Things You Must Do to Beat Them in a 7-Game Series

The Los Angeles Lakers are peaking just as the postseason approaches, and it will be difficult for other teams to prevent the Lakers from capturing their third consecutive NBA title.

Difficult, but not impossible.

The Lakers are arguably the biggest, most talented, and they are definitely the most experienced team heading into the 2010-11 postseason, but there are chinks in the defending champ's armour.

Whether or not any opponent has the ability to exploit those weaknesses over the course of a seven game series is a different matter.

Any team can be beat in a single game, but unlike the Super Bowl or the NCAA Tournament, the NBA's champion is decided by the pressure of a seven game series, and more often than not the last team standing is usually the best.

The Lakers have been that team the last two years in part because they have imposed their will on the opposition, and their opponents have been unable to do the same on a consistent basis.

The Lakers' playoff opponents in 2009 and 2010 have been able to offer glimpses of strategies that could lead to victory over Los Angeles, but none of the teams have been able to maintain their advantage.

I have compiled a list of five things any opponent must do if they hope to defeat the Lakers in the postseason, but unfortunately, the list is a package deal.

Conquering one aspect of the list may cause the Lakers problems, but it probably won't beat them, because one of the greatest things about their championship teams has been their ability to adjust to their opponent's schemes.

In order to dethrone the Lakers, an opponent must excel in all five categories. Even then victory will not be guaranteed, but it will give you a fighting chance.

I have also included some of the teams who have found varying degrees of success employing these strategies in the past, but is there any team capable of combining these t...

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