Lakers Playoff Schedule: Breaking Down Marathon First Round with Nuggets
Nothing comes easy to the LA Lakers, and that goes double for their prospects to open the first round in the 2012 NBA Playoffs.
The Lakers bring a tumultuous season to a close. It started with a head-scratcher of a trade that saw the reigning sixth man of the year Lamar Odom leave for practically nothing.
It ended with Metta World Peace throwing an elbow seen around the world. He is well deserving of his seven-game suspension.
In the end, the bookends of the season were enough to make you nauseous, not that the middle was all that comfort-inducing.
I hope that sounds beyond cynical, because it should be. The Lakers could very well lose this series, but they can also trounce the Nuggets with ease.
Here is how.
But first, the schedule. All times Eastern, and via NBA.com.
| Sun. April 29 - 3:30 p.m. | Denver at L.A. Lakers | ABC |
| Tue. May 1 - 10:30 p.m. | Denver at L.A. Lakers | TNT |
| Fri May 4 - 10:30 p.m. | L.A. Lakers at Denver | ESPN |
| Sun. May 6 - 9:30 p.m. | L.A. Lakers at Denver | TNT |
| *Tue. May 8 - TBD | Denver at L.A. Lakers | TBD |
| *Thu. May 10 - TBD | L.A. Lakers at Denver | TBD |
| *Sat. May 12 - TBD | Denver at L.A. Lakers | TNT |
Defense
There is one reason the Lakers took a gamble on Mike Brown leading a title contender back to the promised land, and that's defense.
The Lakers can, at times, play stifling defense and hit the boards better than any team out there. They have something in their DNA that negates them from doing it consistently.
The onus on the defensive end is much bigger with World Peace taking the series off with elbow related issues (He throws them).
Danilo Gallinari will be that much more dangerous in this series.
Feed the Big Men
The Denver Nuggets have nice size down low, but they can't stop the tandem of Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol.
Too often, the Lakers get lulled into a sense of security and get away from hitting the pain with passes. The easiest way to take the series is live down low.
Backcourt Superiority
Kobe Bryant was given every shot at returning to full health, so here is hoping that his legs are solid for this marathon run through the postseason.
The real key is Ramon Session at the one. We all know that he has been a treat on the court, pushing the ball like no other point guard has in years for the Lakers.
However, the Lakers still need solid defense at the point, and that's something that isn't a guarantee with Sessions.
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