2012 NBA Playoffs: Bold Western Conference Predictions

The Los Angeles Lakers are going to win the West, but it is not going to be easy.

The Western Conference playoffs are going to be amazing. There will be nothing but great matchups until a champion is crowned. 

Check out some of the excitement the West holds for us. 

Memphis Will Overcome Game 1 Heartache 

Coughing up a 20-plus-point fourth quarter lead at home in Game 1 of a series is enough to cripple almost any team. Not this scrappy Memphis squad. 

They will not be phased. This is a team that thrives on relentless defense and solid rebounding. This style makes it easier for them to overcome a depressing outcome like this because they can thrive with hustle and hard work. 

They will also be benefited by the fact that the Clippers lost Caron Butler to a broken hand, and his loss cannot be underestimated. 

The Clippers do not have a good backup solution for Butler. The majority of the minutes will likely fall to Nick Young, and he will be playing out of position and be a liability on defense. 

This will be all the advantage the Grizzlies need to take this one in seven. 

Spurs Will Avenge Last Season's Failure 

The eighth-seeded Memphis Grizzlies took down the No. 1 seeded San Antonio Spurs in last year's playoffs. 

San Antonio will get their revenge in the second round of this year's playoffs. 

Last year, the Grizzlies gave San Antonio fits with their frontcourt length, but this Spurs team is peaking for the playoffs, and they are a better squad than last year. 

They have a healthy Manu Ginobili playing with fresh legs. Tony Parker is playing the best basketball of his career, and the newly acquired Stephen Jackson adds a ton of punch off the bench. 

San Antonio proved they could handle the Grizzlies by going 4-0 against them in the regular season, and they will knock them out of the playoffs in six games. 

Lakers Will Return to the Finals

The Spurs win will set up for a dynamic Western Conference finals as Tim Duncan and David Robinson take on Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant—wait, what year is this? 

These two teams will open up a new chapter of to the rivalry that defined the conference about a decade ago. 

The Spurs took 2-1 from the Lakers this season. However, the first two—which the teams split—came when Kobe was on the shelf with his shin injury, and the third was the Mamba's first game back. 

The Lakers have geared up for these playoffs, and they will be a different animal when these two meet in the playoffs. And the biggest factor here will be Andrew Bynum. 

The Spurs do not have the muscle to handle him. This much was clear when Bynum grabbed 30 rebounds in the Lakers' lone victory against the Spurs. 

The Lakers will take this one in six.