The Lakerhead

Lakers Western Conference Champions

Finally.  This was what Laker fans around the world have been waiting for.  A championship performance.  A Laker effort that is more than the sum of its parts.

High Five! It Will Be Kobe's and Phil Jackson's 6th Finals Appearance Together.

The Lakers went into Denver and beat down the Nuggets 119-92, winning the series 4-2 and advancing to the NBA Finals for the 2nd straight year in a row.

I waited for that moment where it all came together.  In the first round, the Jazz proved to be too dis-shoveled to properly test the Lakers.  In the 2nd round, the Lakers only did what had to be done, beating the Rockets in Game 7 at Staples Center.

I was left sitting there eating popcorn, unsatisfied.  I felt that uplifting moment, that moment when you know your team is “the one” that year might never come.

But against the Nuggets, the most talented team they have played so far in these playoffs, the Lakers played like champions to close out the series.

Kobe Says Goodbye to Melo By Dropping 35 with 10 Dimes.

Kobe Bryant was once again ridiculous, dishing out a performance even I questioned he could match at his well-worn age of 30.  35 point, 10 assists, 6 rebounds on 60% shooting is out of this world for a perimeter player in his 13th year.  It is a testament to his work ethic, his desire, his heart.

After watching his sometimes painfully detailed, 90 minute documentary of him obsessing over one game (Kobe Doin’ Work), it should be obvious to even the most casual NBA viewer that Bryant is a basketball genius.  A love and obsession so deep is what kept his body delivering killer performance after killer performance, while Carmelo looked like he simply gassed out after Game 1.

Pau Gasol was already a wonderful player.  With this series, he pushes the argument to whether he will enter the conversation as one of the great big men to play the game.  A championship will push that conversation into much more serious contention.

20 Points, 12 Rebounds, 6 Assists. Gasol Helped Put the Nuggets to Bed.

With tough guy Nene (and sometimes resident hacker Kenyon Martin) checking him all series, Gasol puts up 17 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists, and shoots 62% all series.  “No more”, Gasol agreed when told that the soft label is gone from his image.

The ultimate surprise for the Lakers, however, has been the play of Trevor Ariza.  The Lakers’ small forward has befuddled Carmelo Anthony, who has not been the same ever since Ariza let the press know that his coach wants him to concentrate more on straight-up defense on Melo   instead of funneling him to help defenders.

After Game 1, Ariza’s focused defense helped force Carmelo into 34% shooting the rest of the series.  As an added bonus, Ariza has been lights out from 3-point range, shooting a scorching 43% from long range all series.  He is the Lakers’ new-found third wheel that makes them unstoppable when he’s operating on all cylinders.

Give That Baby Western Champions Trophy a Cute Team Hat and Call it a Night: The Lakers Have More Work to Do.

The Lakers enter the NBA Finals this year more focused, more experienced, and most of all, more hungry.  The team looked almost disgusted as they walked away from the Western Champions baby trophy.

They know what’s at stake.  For Kobe Bryant, an unmistakable stamp into the very short list of the greatest of all-time.  For the Lakers, their place in history forever.  4 wins stand between irrelevance or immortality.