Why LA Lakers Couldn't Survive in NBA Playoffs

For the first time since 2007, the Los Angeles Lakers have been swept in the first round of the NBA playoffs. The San Antonio Spurs have ensured the Lakers' sudden first-round exit by means of a 103-89 win on Sunday.

And now, the speculation begins as LA's season ends: what happened? What was the exact reason for the Lakers' downfall in the postseason, especially after having so much momentum at the end of the regular season? The answer, from the perspective of this humble columnist, is Murphy's Law. 

For those not familiar with Murphy's Law, it is described as the theory that anything that can go wrong, will. And for the Lakers, no statement can be truer. 

Since the beginning of the Lakers' short-lived postseason, it was just one bad event after another. The team came in to the postseason without its cornerstone, Kobe Bryant, and because of this, the Lakers were immediately placed at a disadvantage. 

Despite losing the Black Mamba to injury, all did not seem lost for the Lake Show. That is, until they played their first game. The absence of the Lakers' leader made the team look like a bunch of chickens with their heads cut off during postseason play. 

Communication was lost, and with no dedicated leader there to direct traffic, things only got worse. Offensively, it looked like something out of a Benny Hill sketch, but people were laughing for all the wrong reasons. 

Each game was embarrassing to watch, and just when you thought things couldn't get any worse, they up and did. 

Both Steve Nash and Steve Blake went down with injuries, leaving LA with a serious gap at the guard position. A few days later, Metta World Peace is injured, and by this point, the fat lady is tuning up. 

The Lakers' game four performance was dismal and the lack of resources became increasingly evident. Losing most of the team's key veterans led to an increased lack of communication, which resulted in the most dysfunction we've seen from the Lakers all season. 

Despite knowing that it was clearly a one-sided matchup, most fans were relieved at finally seeing their team be put out of their misery once and for all. 

The Lakers were simply victims of circumstance. If everyone had just stayed healthy, we'd be seeing a completely different story at this point. All we can do now is count down the clock until next season.