Lakers vs. Celtics: 5 Budding Rivalries Destined to Replace It as the NBA's Best

Last night's game between the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers, though a closely fought event, reminded me of Madonna's halftime show. They were a bunch of players too old to do the things they used to do, but were still trying. 

It didn't have the same intensity. It felt more like a "friendly" rivalry than anything else. It was just sort of...sad? Not sad in the sense of how they played or anything; it was sad in the sense that we were waving farewell to a great rivalry. 

Meanwhile, there are five up-and-coming rivalries destined to overtake the Lakers vs. Celtics as the best rivalry in the NBA. Here they are. 

New Jersey Nets and the New York Knicks

The Knicks and the Nets are not yet an intense rivalry but they soon will be. They are not yet contenders but they soon will be. 

Both teams have been extremely aggressive lately and they are very much competing with one another. When Carmelo Anthony got dealt to the Knicks, the Nets stole the thunder by working a trade for Deron Williams almost immediately. 

The Knicks landed Tyson Chandler and since then the Nets have been working for Dwight Howard. 

When the Nets move to Brooklyn, this will become an intense rivalry between two teams that just don't like each other. 

Indiana Pacers and Philadelphia 76ers

The Indiana Pacers and Philadelphia 76ers might not be the teams you would rush to put up to the top of a budding rivalry list, but it's one I can easily see brewing. They are two emerging teams who will be competing for respect in a conference that promises to be dominated by the Chicago Bulls and Miami Heat.

They both have brilliant coaches and great depth, but they have very different styles of play. Philadelphia is a young and athletic team that flies around the court on the strength of their wings. The Pacers are physical team that loves to knock down players who go hard to the rim. 

That means there's going to be some "incidents" inevitably between these two teams. There's going to be some chippiness and there are going to be some hard hits. 

As these teams compete for respect as the "third" team that can contend, there will be an increasing dislike for one another. 

Memphis Grizzlies and Oklahoma City Thunder

Last year the Memphis Grizzlies and Oklahoma City Thunder played a grueling and exciting postseason series. With both teams having their key players locked up for years to come, this is probably going to be the Western Conference final on more than one occasion. 

That's aided by the fact that both teams have players who play with attitude. For the Grizzlies you have Tony Allen and for the Thunder you have Kendrick Perkins. Neither player is particularly admired for their outstanding restraint. 

This will be a fantastic rivalry over the next six to seven years, and perhaps even longer. Two small-market teams competing for the big stage, less than an eight-hour drive away from each other—this has all the hallmarks of a great rivalry. 

Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers

This rivalry was one I predicted last summer when I said the Clips would get Chris Paul, and was somewhat scoffed at for. Ahem. What has two thumbs and was right? This guy!

Well, half-right anyway. The Dwight Howard part is still pending. 

The Lakers are clearly not happy about the Clippers acting like they belong in the Staples Center. They are certainly not happy about them getting Paul. 

This has quickly become a testy rivalry between teams that really don't like each other. It seems that every game they play ends up with one team complaining about the other. Half the "wine" in California seems to be produced after the Clippers face the Lakers. 

Chicago Bulls and Miami Heat

This rivalry right now is the best in the game. These are clearly the two best teams in the East, and probably the best two teams in the NBA if you count defense for anything. Sorry, Oklahoma City Thunder, but you just don't play it.

The two teams have played nine times since they both rebuilt last summer. The total score differential over the nine games has been seven points. All but two of the games were decided in the last minute or two of play. 

These games have been remarkably even and they play each other hard. Both teams have their cores under contract for years to come. This a rivalry that is just going to build. 

The fans of the two teams don't like each other. Ask any Bulls fan who the worst trolls are and they'll tell you the Heat fans. Ask a Heat fan and they'll point to the Bulls fans. 

The contrast between the teams is interesting, as well is their contrast in personalities. The Heat are a top-heavy team who have tremendous star power. The Bulls have depth. 

The Bulls have the league's MVP. The Heat have the league's best player. 

The Bulls are led by a reluctant and humble superstar in Derrick Rose who named his latest shoes after his mom. The Heat are led by a man with "Chosen One" tattooed on his back. 

Between the difference in personalities, the dislike the fans have for one another and the evenness of the teams, as well as the prevailing view they are the best two teams in the NBA, this is a rivalry that is the most intense right now, but likely to get even more intense.