The Lakers Are the Best NBA Organization of the 2000s

With the decade winding down, it's about time we look back and evaluate who had the best decade among NBA teams.

Unlike my worst of the decade slideshow, I'll only be evaluating the Los Angeles Lakers and the San Antonio Spurs since there really isn't anyone else that can be seriously considered.

I'll be looking at the 99-00 season through the 08-09 season.

If you don't like it, then write your own article.

Apologies to the Detroit Pistons, but only having a single title doomed them in this writer's eyes.

Regular Season

Spurs Record: 576- 244 (.702)
Lakers Record: 530- 290 (.646)

The Spurs had a winning record every single year whereas the Lakers were under .500 once.

The Spurs made the playoffs every year whereas the Lakers missed the postseason once.

The Lakers had seven fifty-win seasons compared to the Spurs' 10.

Overall it's pretty clear that the Spurs were more consistent, which led them to having a much superior record than the Lakers.

Advantage - Spurs

Playoffs

Spurs Record (10 appearances): 81- 53 (.604)
Lakers Record (7 appearances): 98- 50 (.662)

The Lakers have six finals appearances and four titles.

The Spurs have three finals appearances and three titles.

The Lakers also won three-straight titles during one stretch in this decade. The Spurs never won consecutive titles.

Overall it's hard to look at these numbers and come to the conclusion that the Spurs had more postseason success than the Lakers.

Advantage - Lakers

Awards

First off, I really discredit the validity of the NBA's MVP award since it seems to be based more on what a player has done in the past than what they are currently doing.

Anyway, here's how the teams stack up.

MVP

Lakers: Shaq won it in 1999-00 and Kobe won it in 2008-09.

Spurs: Tim Duncan won it twice in a row starting in 2001-02.

All Star MVP

Lakers: Shaq and Duncan shared the award in 2000. Kobe won in 2002, 2007, and shared the award with Shaq (of Phoenix) in 2009.

Spurs: Duncan (shared with Shaq) in 2000

Coach of the Year

Lakers: None

Spurs: Greg Popovich in 02-03

Consensus - The Lakers have seemed to have had a little more superstar power during this decade than the Spurs.

Consensus

On one hand you can look at the Spurs regular season record, their perfect track record in regards to making the playoffs, and their three titles and assume that they are of course the team of the decade.

Maybe in some other decade that would have been true, but the Lakers seem to have one-upped them in what really matters.

Fact is, these guys and these organizations want to win titles. Making the playoffs is nice, but you know that deep down inside everyone involved in sports, winning a title is most important.

With four titles, six finals appearances, and the best playoff record in the NBA it's pretty clear that the Lakers were the team of the decade.