Or should they?
The Lakers are currently listed at 5-to-1 to capture the title (according to Bovada), but with the way they have performed thus far in 2012, these odds should be much worse—or better depending how you look at it.
After all, they fired their head coach Mike Brown after five games. Their two-time MVP winning point guard Steve Nash has exactly eight assists on the year. Pau Gasol, their All-Star power forward is being mentioned in trade rumors almost hourly and their new superstar center Dwight Howard has been much more like the Tin Man than Iron Man. Plus, their defensive effort is pathetic.
And despite the fact that their superstar, Kobe Bryant, is arguably having his most efficient season to date, the Lakers still own a sub .500 record after 21 games.
Yet, only two teams—the Miami Heat and Oklahoma City Thunder—are favored above the Lakers to win it all and the odds aren’t likely to change any time soon.
Why?
This is the Lakers we are talking about. Anything associated with the purple and gold across the NBA realm will always have backers. And at 5-to-1, that is likely the highest number you will see the rest of the year because this team really has nowhere else to go but up.
The Lakers are learning an entire new scheme under head coach Mike D'Antoni, while trying to get the stink of the Princeton offense off their backs.
That’s going to take time. If this were another strike-shortened season they’d be in real trouble, but they have another 60 games to right the ship.
And help is on the way.
Remember, no one knows how to run D'Antoni's offense better than Nash. Right now, the Lakers are running their offense with Darius Morris and Chris Duhon, the same guys that w...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
