L.A. Lakers' Pivot Points: Five Potholes on the Road to a Repeat, Part One

Repeating as NBA champions is a long and arduous journey for the Los Angeles Lakers. The road is perilous, and filled with many potential obstacles along the way.

There are a few teams that can be a nuisance to the Lakers, but they are more like bumps or detours. They can be troublesome, but ultimately are not enough of a problem to hinder the journey.

These bumps are represented by teams such as Utah, Portland, and Dallas. All are talented teams, but because of various reasons, are not much of a threat to the Lakers in a seven game series.

There are two other Western Conference teams that could be much more difficult to conquer. These two teams represent potential hazards that could derail the Lakers' repeat hopes, and spirit them away to an early summer.

The first of these teams is the Denver Nuggets, who the Lakers dispatched in six games in last year's Western Conference Finals.

Until their meeting with the Lakers, the Nuggets had been playing the best basketball of any team throughout the playoffs. Many people predicted that the Nuggets would be the team to upset the Lakers and ruin their title hopes.

Surprisingly to some, the Lakers had a much easier time with the Nuggets than they did with their second round opponent, the Houston Rockets. The Rockets managed to extend the Lakers to seven games.

There could be multiple explanations for this, but it boils down to a problem that has been an achilles heel for the Lakers, their inability to defend quick point guards.

Chauncey Billups is an amazing guard and one of the best floor generals in the league, but he's not an extremely quick guard, thus it was easier for Laker defenders to keep him in front of them.

Houston's Aaron Brooks is an example of the type of guard that gives the Lakers trouble, and it was mainly his play that allowed the Rockets to push the Lakers to the brink.

Without the threat of constantly being beaten off the dribble, the Lakers were able to slow the game down and take advantage of their superior size and length.

The undisciplined Nuggets were more suited for a fast pace and the deliberate style of the Lakers eventually wore them down. This year it appears the Nuggets have a weapon to counter the Lake' Show.

Rookie point guard Ty Lawson may be the fastest player in the league from baseline to baseline, and he possesses the strength to get to the rim at will. There is no one on the Lakers roster who is capable of staying in front of him.

With Lawson in the game, the Nuggets have been at their fast-breaking best, and he seems to have already won the favor of his coaches and teammates.

Give coach George Karl credit for recognizing the difference that Lawson could make to his team on both sides of the floor. He comes from a fast-pace-oriented team in college, and he has the pedigree of a national title for confidence.

The addition of Lawson doesn't make the Nuggets previous troubles disappear, but he does help to mask them in the blur of his power dribble.

The Nuggets have all the other ingredients including a superstar in Carmelo Anthony, depth, speed, and energy.

I can only forsee two things that could hinder Denver in their quest, but these two things have been the Nuggets' kryptonite for the last several years.

The first thing is a lack of length on the frontline. Nene and Kenyon Martin provide considerable skills and power in the post, but they are under-sized for their respective positions.

Chris Andersen is a high energy substitute off the bench, but his lack of height is no less an issue for the Nuggets. Their only hope in de-throning the Lakers would be to turn the series into a shoot-out, and therein lies the second problem.

Before the arrival of Billups, the Nuggets were a talented but largely undisciplined team, capable of winning games but never able to compete in a seven-game series.

Billups' steady hand and leadership proved to be a calming influence for the Nuggets who were able to use his guidance to bridle their emotions and energy.

Billups helped, but some of the dilemma remained and was exposed in the series against the Lakers. The Nuggets proved to be their own worst enemy when the game was on the line and continually suffered from a lack of focus.

Two turnovers on inbounds passes were critical game-changing moments, and can be blamed on Karl as much as on the players. It is the coach's responsibilty to have his team prepared for those types of moments and his team was not.

This problem extends to both sides of the floor as the Nuggets were constantly out of position on defense, and were to quick with the trigger on offense.

If Denver can find a way to play a controlled-chaos type of game, then their potential may be unlimited. They have the roster to contend with the Lakers, and the fire power to eclipse them.

The only issue with the Nuggets is, when the pressure is on do they stabilize themselves and focus, or do they revert to their undisciplined and out of control style of play that has become so familiar with them?