NBA Playoffs 2012: Clippers Have Better Postseason Prospects Than Aging Lakers

As the NBA playoffs near, every division race in the league is all but decided except who will ultimately capture the Pacific Division crown.

Throughout the months of March and April, the Los Angeles Lakers have failed to take advantage of several opportunities to put the Los Angeles Clippers away, but as each team heads down the stretch, the Lakers' division lead is down to a mere 0.5 games.

Both teams have shown that they could possibly make lengthy postseason runs, but as the regular season prepares to come to a close, it could be the Clippers that are better-suited to make a lengthy run and not the aging Lakers.

The Clippers have started to figure things out, winning 12 of their past 14 games. It was going to take some time before the Clippers really learned to play with each other and it appears that they are all on the same page at the right time heading into the postseason.

This is the reason they went out and acquired Chris Paul and it is starting to pay dividends.

The Clippers' recent success dates back to shortly after the trade deadline when they acquired shooting guard Nick young, who has been a surprisingly good fit in Los Angeles. What that has accomplished is making the Clippers a deeper team than they’ve been all season.

By no means do the Clippers have championship-caliber depth, but they’re getting contributions from a lot of different people right now and may be the hottest team in the NBA.

The Lakers may have the best starting five in the game, but their lack of depth could eventually cost them.

With Kobe Bryant on the sidelines, the Lakers have gone 4-2 during their past six games, but also still have upcoming dates with both Oklahoma City and San Antonio. The Clippers have a game in hand and could wind up stealing their first division title.

That’s big, because jumping up to the No. 3 seed could lead to a first-round series against Denver or Dallas while the Lakers would be forced to tangle with a very talented Memphis Grizzlies team.

Good point-guard play and timely shooting can go a long way to a team’s success in the postseason and with the way that Paul has played this season, he can lead the Clippers throughout the playoffs. That’s what he was brought to Los Angeles to do.

The Clippers can get secondary scoring from the likes of Randy Foye (10.6 points per game), Caron Butler (12.1), Mo Williams (13.6) and Young (14.7). Throw in the potential dominance of Blake Griffin (20.6) and Paul (19.3) and the Clippers can get production from several different areas.

That’s something the Lakers can’t claim.

The Clippers have the savvy and experience of Paul, Butler and Williams to go along with the youthful energy of Griffin, DeAndre Jordan and Foye.

That’s something else the Lakers can’t boast. Outside of their outstanding starting five of Bryant, Andrew Bynum, Pau Gasol, Ramon Sessions and Metta World Peace, the Lakers don’t have much else on their roster that can contribute in a big way.

They’re not only missing production, but energy off the bench as well.

Make no mistake about it, the Clippers will be a handful to deal with when the playoffs roll around. Don’t be surprised if they are the last team standing in the city of Los Angeles.