Why Los Angeles Lakers Are Still Team to Beat in the Western Conference

The Los Angeles Lakers might not be the defending champions this year. They may not be the best road team in the league. They may not have Phil Jackson. There are all kinds of reasons you could argue that they aren't the team to beat in the West this year.

Make no mistake about it, though. They are. 

They still have three things going for them that make them the team to beat in the Western Conference, and all the arguments about what they don't have don't make those things go away. 

First, they still have Kobe Bryant. Whether he shoots too much or not isn't a great concern to me. That's going to work itself out. Right now he's the real "King" of the NBA. He is the game's senior statesman. His legacy is unmatched. He has five NBA titles. He's Kobe. 

When it comes to the postseason, who he is has an impact on both teams. I'm not going to argue that makes them unbeatable, but it's a huge factor in any series he's in. If he gets going, it's going to have a positive impact on the Lakers and a fearsome one on the opponents. The Lakers are 22-7 in the postseason when Kobe has scored at least 35 points. That's powerful both in the game and between the ears. 

Second, they have two skilled seven-footers. When you look at the West, there are not a lot of teams that have a lot in the middle. That combination of skilled seven-footers in the middle in a seven-game series still gives the Lakers a huge (literally) advantage. 

The Thunder don't have anyone seven feet tall. The Spurs don't either. Neither do the Clippers. The Grizzlies have one in Marc Gasol, but they also have the 6'9" Zach Randolph paired up with him. The bottom line is that the Lakers have the advantage in the paint, and that tends to be an advantage in the playoffs when games slow down and it becomes about half court execution. 

Finally, they now ave the one thing they needed to help the other things go in Ramon Sessions. His ability to drive and get into the paint, breaking down defenses, creating shots for their bigs and for Kobe makes all the other players better. 

The word I keep wanting to use in describing his effect is "catalyst." A catalyst is an agent which, when added, causes the other components to become active. That's precisely what Sessions does. It's not about what he does that changes things for the Lakers, it's the impact that he brings. 

As the Lakers work Sessions more and more into the rotation, and eventually into the starting lineup, look for them to go on a winning streak and enter the postseason as hot as any team in the West. They won't be the top seed, but they'll be the team to beat.