Bleacher Report - Articles by Miguel Vasquez

Not This Year: Los Angeles Lakers Will Finally Suceed in Postseason

Miguel Vasquez — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 12:59:49 -0400

Joyful Lakers fans all over the world are celebrating the fact that their team ended the regular season in the top spot of the competitive-without-precedent Western Conference.

It is a remarkable achievement indeed. The top spot is the cherry on top of a great season and a demonstration that the Lakers will finally dominate in the playoffs.

Not really.

Being number one in the West can be deceiving. Unlike the Eastern Conference's Boston Celtics, the Lakers are not superior to their Conference rivals. The Lakers can lose to any of those teams, including the number eight seeded Denver Nuggets.

Look at these names: Carmelo Anthony, Allen Iverson, Kenyon Martin, Marcus Camby, Nené Hilario, J.R Smith.

Not so easy to beat them, huh?

The only reason I think the Lakers will prevail is because Denver is not mature enough to consistently play well as a team. If they reached their full potential, it would be a different story. They sure have enough talent in their roster, but the only consistent player is Allen Iverson.

Denver has not been able to get Carmelo to step up, realize his full potential, and actually care enough. Kenyon Martin tends to lose focus, and J.R Smith doesn’t play enough to give them the support they need.

The Lakers are not much more talented, but they have been able to find their game and execute it consistently. The maturity that Kobe and Fisher provide the Lakers with will make a difference in this first round.

Lakers will take the series in five games, and at least two of their victories will be blow out wins.

What ya think?

Forget MVP! Kobe Bryant Needs Some Championship Rings

Miguel Vasquez — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 13:00:04 -0400

It seems that the most interesting subject to write about lately is the NBA MVP race. Way too early this season Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett and LeBron James fans exposed their case for their chosen MVP with totally biased arguments, tricky use of stats and emotional displays of devotion. How many times did we read: Kobe fears LeBron, Lebron Owns Kobe, etc...?

As the season continued Chris Paul emerged as an unexpected candidate with a real chance of DESERVING to be named MVP over the rest. And it was great because it feels good to give the award to a humble kid that makes his teammates better. A player that doesn't demand the award, the underdog.

Writers will do just that as I believe they will choose Chris Paul the MVP this season. He is deserving and this is his year. Now, I also believe that he is not the real MVP. Truth is writers don't care if Bryant, too, has carried his team this season. They will ignore that not only Bryant made his teammates better (like Paul did) but also was the most dominant player this season. They won't care.

Bryant earned that treatment years ago when he made public his beef with Shaquille O'Neal. Then the adultery incident happened. After that, he started this season by demanding a trade and acting like a spoiled six-year-old. It doesn't feel good to give a guy like that the award.

But Bryant is still the best player in the league.

He has been for a while now and everybody knows it. I think it is better for him if he doesn't receive an MVP award EVER. Then twenty years from now we will look at his numbers and highlight on the future television sets and say, "can you believe that this guy never won an MVP? How did Paul and Nash kept stealing it from him." Not wining an MVP adds to his legend. It will make him even greater. He just need to win some championships now. Not only this one, but at least two more before handing the league over to LeBron and the players of the future.

If that happen I will say I lived to see not only Michael Jordan, but also Kobe Bryant and LeBron James. I will then understand those who lived to see Magic, Jordan and Bird, when I was too young to care.

MVP Contenders LeBron James, Kobe Bryant: Too Early to Tell

Miguel Vasquez — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 04:42:53 -0500

LeBron Fans: If it makes you feel better, Kobe Bryant's supporters have been in the exact same situation before.

They too have backed the player with all the good numbers. Bryant’s play was superior to the rest and he single-handedly led his teams to the playoffs. Still, he didn't win the MVP.

I am not saying that James will not win it this year—it's hard to tell at this point. But right now he’s not the favorite; instead James comes in second.

The really bad news is that there's nothing he can do about. LeBron James has done it all, but that may not be enough.

Kobe Fans: Don’t celebrate just yet.

It’s true that Bryant is having a good season, and he seems to have improved upon those issues that disqualified him in past years. The result is that his teammates have visibly progressed, and the team looks almost like Jordan's Bulls.

Just remember, it's not locked yet. Now that the Lakers are such a good team—with undeniably excellent players like Gasol, Bynum, and Fisher—they have to deliver by making it to the playoffs. They also have to be among the leaders.

So far they are, but don’t forget that the Lakers are competing in the Western Conference and a couple of bad days could knock them from their privileged position.

It’s too early to tell. Kobe is in the lead for the MVP right now, but he is followed closely by LeBron and Chris Paul. Let’s wait until the regular season is over. I am sure whatever happens will surprise.