Lakers vs. Thunder: Dominant Series Proves OKC a Lock to Win NBA Title
With the Oklahoma City Thunder's 106-90 victory last night over the Los Angeles Lakers, the Thunder have clinched their spot in the Western Conference finals against the San Antonio Spurs. The winner of this series will go on to play for the NBA championship.
The Thunder's series with the Lakers saw the young guns dominate the old guys. Although a very experienced playoff team, the Lakers could not stop the onslaught of the Thunder, losing the series in five games.
To be honest, the series was not even close. Yes, the Lakers won one game and kept it close in two of their losses. But in Game 1, they were blown out 119-90. Last night, the game was not close either, as the Thunder triumphed by 16 points.
Any team that dominates the Lakers like that has proven they are ready to win a championship. The Thunder have done everything right up until this point to indicate they have the tools to win.
In their series with the Lakers, the Thunder's bench, led by Sixth Man of the Year James Harden, completely outplayed the Lakers' bench. Not only did they produce numbers, but they also were able to log time, unlike the Lakers. It was like Los Angeles didn't even trust their bench to log double-digit minutes.
Furthermore, the combination of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook has been too hard to handle all season. In their series with the Lakers, the two had a combined average of 52.4 PPG, which in most cases would account for more than half the team's scoring. They are currently the best one-two punch in professional basketball.
They will go on to take the San Antonio Spurs in the next round, who were the best team in the Western Conference this year. But, with how youthful and hot the Thunder have been, I cannot imagine they lose to the Spurs, despite how experienced the Spurs are.
With the Bulls out of the playoffs and much of the Eastern Conference in disarray, should the Thunder make the finals, which I think they will, they will win the NBA title. They will prove that their team of young stars will be a force to be reckoned with for years to come.
We could be seeing a franchise in the making. With Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, James Harden and company proving to be an established franchise of the future, teams of the NBA need to take notice of the changing of the guard.
