Official 2010 NBA Playoffs Discussion

There are a handul of differences here:

1.) The Lakers have a few players that can be huge difference makers on BOTH sides of the ball. Kobe and Artest are 2 of the 5 best defenders at the swing positions, Gasol was blocking shots all over the place in the Finals, and Odom can legitimately guard 3 positions with great success. The only player on the Nuggets that can be a difference-maker consistently on both ends of the ball is Billups.

2.) The Nuggets had EVERYTHING going right for them last season. The Billups trade was just the shot in the arm Carmelo Anthony needed, but there are way too many X factors on the roster (JR Smith, Kenyon Martin, Nene) and if they lose any of those three players for a significant period of time, they're going to struggle because they lose a lot of versatility and depth. The Lakers meanwhile are going to be a top 5 team in the league as long as Kobe and 2 other starters are healthy... and we all know that Kobe and Ron are both going to be on their best behavior as long as things are going well.

3.) The Lakers are MUCH better coached than the Nuggets. George Karl is a ticking time bomb as a coach and is eventually going to say something wrong or make a terrible coaching decision that's going to create a distraction. It's happened everywhere else he's coached. Meanwhile, Phil Jackson is arguably the best coach in the history of American team sports. The Lakers are definitely better than the sum of their parts because they're completely behind their coach.


Honestly, the gap probably isn't enormous, but I really don't see a whole lot of areas where the Nuggets are undoubtedly better off besides the starters at the 1 & 3 spots (where the Lakers have more depth on the bench).

yeah thats it, nothing to do with Kobe.

Guess we'll see in the playoffs.. if denver even makes it to play LA again

The Lakers have more talent than anybody in the league.

If you take Kobe off that team they still have a chance to go deep in the playoffs.

If you took just Bynum or Gasol off and left the rest, they still are the favorite to win the championship with the way they've been playing.

Boston is the only team that as of this point looks like they could stand a chance because they bring defense, serious defense. That's all that anyone can hope for while playing LA. But LA is just too big overall and to beat them 4 times in 7 games is going to be hard... but the same can be said about Boston.

it was a joke.. just like the knicks in general

We shall see this Summer, won't we?

yea I agree with quanthor but one thing he's forgetting is that Artest is going to get mad and challenge those guys if they are taking games off early in the series or half assing it.

Ariza was bailing that team out of those situations at times, their identity has changed with Artest and the championship from last year.

Let's face it, Denver might be able to compete against them but with how bad the Spurs are looking, nobody is going to stop LA. The Spurs just came out and said they won't be resigning Ginobili because he can't stay healthy. That's the first sign of them ever saying it may be time to go in another direction/partial signs of turning the corner. Parker can't stay healthy either, it appears.

With the improvements of Bynum and the solidification of Gasol as a potential top 5 player last season, the Lakers are just too big to be stopped, even if the guard play is shut down. No one can bang around with them for 48 minutes and expect to keep up. They are just too big. It's three 7 footers on both ends of the court along with Kobe and Artest.

you're real ignorant if you are implying that LeBron is going to the big apple outside of the once a year visit for a triple-double and a beatdown of the knicks

the funny thing is you're being serious. why the would LeBron in his right mind want to go to New York and play? Every year he goes in there and smashes them.. he obviously sees that the pieces in new york are no better than what he has in cleveland.

but good luck kid