LeBron James May Win MVP, but Kobe Bryant and the Lakers Will Win Rings

With the regular season coming to a close, the discussion about the favorite to win the NBA Championship is on the tip of everyone’s tongue.

With a league-leading record of 66-15 and the almost unanimous MVP LeBron James, the Cleveland Cavaliers must be the favorite to win, right? Wrong!

The opinion held by this writer, as well as many NBA experts, points to the team from tinseltown, the Los Angeles Lakers, as the NBA Champion come summer.

Not to take anything away from the incredible year King James is having, but even as often as LeBron is crowned MVP, this year a fact is noted that Kobe Bryant is still the best player in the league. No one can match Kobe’s closing ability due to the fact that he has the complete offensive arsenal.

To James' detriment, the Lakers are just too well-rounded and too complete a team to attribute their success to one player like the Cavaliers have done. The simple fact is that Kobe has the reputation around the league to be capable of doing whatever he wants whenever he wants.

If you doubt this, ask Greg Popovich, one of the most highly respected basketball minds of this era and a constant advocate for the futility of trying to stop a determined Kobe Bryant. Despite the fact that he is so skilled on the court, Kobe’s edge is undoubtedly due to his intensity and mental fortitude, the characteristics that escalate him to a level shared only by Tiger Woods.

Despite the timeless matchup of these individuals, a larger disparity exists between the rest of these two teams' rosters. Delonte West, although more a true point guard and with a couple inches, gives up strength and most importantly experience to the veteran Derek Fisher.

The frontcourt matchup also favors the Lakers with Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol easily trumping the Ilgauskas-Varejao tandem. (Don’t forget about Lamar Odom coming off the bench.)

With Kobe and LeBron starting at different positions, it creates matchup problems both ways, but more importantly shows the lack of size the Cavs possess. With the Lakers sporting arguably the best bench in the league, and the Cavs' best bench players being Danny Gibson and Joe Smith, the edge goes to the Lake Show once again.

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