2012 Western Conference Playoffs: 5 Changes the Lakers Must Make

Knowing their opponents were older, wearier, and had a more exhausting first-round series than they did, the young and fresh Oklahoma City Thunder opened up Game 1 of their conference semifinal series in a big way.

Russell Westbrook had 27 points with nine dimes, while Kevin Durant added 25 points of his own. More impressive is that neither of them needed to be on the hardwood for more than 30 minutes. 

To be frank, the Los Angeles Lakers got absolutely blown out of the gym in Game 1. Many of their weaknesses were exposed, such as their continually bad transition and pick-and-roll defense. The Thunder attack came in flurries of runs, and even with Metta World Peace, the Lakers defense was unprepared.

The Los Angeles Lakers need to remember that this is a seven-game series, and that good teams generally win their series home openers.

However, if they get down, they will be out, and if the rest of the series is anything like Game 1, this second-round exit will be even worse than the embarrassment they suffered at the hands of the Mavericks in 2011.

Metta World Peace Needs to Toughen Up

When the Lakers won the title two years ago, their first-round opponent was a younger Oklahoma City Thunder squad, who they bounced in six games.

A large part of that victory was the physical, tough, and tenacious defense MWP (then Ron Artest) played on Kevin Durant, who shot just under 35 percent in that series.

In Game 1, Durant was a scary-efficient 50 percent from the field. Perhaps he was bothered by the boos, or the tentativeness that comes with being scrutinized for an elbow on James Harden.

A volume scoring machine of Durant's caliber with get his points. But to allow him to do so without working or paying a physical price for it is unacceptable. 

Win the Turnover Battle

During the regular season, the Thunder were the league's worst caretakers of the basketball. In Game 1, they had just three turnovers. Three. The Lakers, meanwhile, had 15.

Part of it has to do with the Lakers' lack of pressure defense, part of it is uncontrollable. In the penultimate game of the regular season (the 2OT win), Los Angeles won the turnover battle 17-13.

If the Lakers can force more turnovers from OKC, it could force the OKC guards to play slower, more conservative, and right into the hands of the Lakers' bigs. 

Bynum Must Protect Rim Better

Big Drew's 20-14 performance is certainly nothing to sneeze at. But as Kareem used to point out to Shaq back in '99 every time O'Neal had a big game and the Lakers lost: "It's not enough."

Bynum needs to realize that the Lakers can only go as far as he takes them. He needs to aim every night to duplicate that 30-rebound performance he had against San Antonio, and that 10-block performance he had against Denver in Game 1.

He should be destroying Perkins, and getting Ibaka into foul trouble so fast that Nick Collison plays near 30 minutes a game. If he doesn't guard the rim like it is his life, Westbrook and Harden are going to eviscerate the Laker guards, and charge at him every possession, and the Lakers will have no chance whatsoever.

There are no X's and O's here. It's all about Bynum's determination, will, and fire to play like every minute is his last in LA, because if the Lakers lose in embarrassing fashion, pundits will call for the Bynum-for-Howard deal once again.

That being said, that all goes away if Bynum finally matures and helps the Lakers win this series and potentially beyond, all while proving he is the best center in the game.  

Be Disciplined on the Pick and Roll

For all the talk about how Mike Brown's job is in jeopardy, it has virtually nothing to do with his strategy. Brown is a defensive mastermind, and what he is telling his team to do is correct. With Westbrook and Harden, there are enough mismatches on the floor the Thunder can exploit.

The Lakers cannot amplify the problem by switching or hedging on the pick and roll; that would ultimately leave a big man trying to chase Westbrook while not guarding the rim an inordinate amount of times due to the Thunder's superior quickness and agility.

Whether Brown gets fired or not, it won't be because his message was wrong. Whether he was able to make it heard is another story. 

Kobe Needs to Be Superman

For the Lakers to win the series, they must do something that they haven't been able to do for what seems like decades: stop a speedy and skilled point guard. 

Because Westbrook is too fast for Blake, and too big for Sessions, coupled with the competitive nature of Kobe, there is no alternative to Kobe checking Westbrook. 

While this may be incredibly taxing on Kobe and ultimately hamstring his offensive production (it already did in Game 1, Kobe had just 20), the Lakers have too many holes on offense and defense for them to get anything less than a vintage-Kobe effort on both the offensive and defensive end.

It sounds like a lot to ask, but given Kobe's insatiable obsession with winning and the elusive sixth ring, the stage is set for Kobe to dig deep and submit one of his greatest playoff series performances ever, if he manages to lock down and bother Westbrook, while doing Kobe things on offense.