NBA Playoffs 2011: With the Lakers Out, NBA Bandwagon Will Pack Up and Move East

The great NBA fan migration has begun.

With the Los Angeles Lakers being swept out of the playoffs and not completing the three-peat that so many of its players and fans expected to happen, we will now witness a phenomena that happens in all major sports, but has not occurred in the NBA at this level of intensity for quite a while.

The NBA bandwagon is packing up and moving east. We are still not sure exactly where it is going, but it is heading east.

Now before I go much further, let me explain; I know that there are millions of die hard Laker fans all over the world who this does not apply to.

I know who you are and I have great respect for you. Included in this group are the fans that actually know who Jerry West was, remember that the team started in Minnesota, and recognize Kurt Rambis as much more than just the coach of the Timberwolves.

You can tell me how good Elgin Baylor was, and you stuck with the team in the rough times between Magic and Kobe.

You know that "Showtime" refers to something more than a cable channel, still wonder how Michael Cooper got his socks so high, and don't consider Kobe Bryant to be the best Laker ever. You stick with your team no matter what.

You are staying put and not included in this group.

The group of fans that I am talking about are the ones that can't name three other Lakers on this year's team, own a No. 8 Kobe jersey because they didn't know he switched numbers and have no clue that the team even played before Pau Gasol arrived—if they even know who he is.

These are the fans that only remember stories of Kobe and Shaq playing together, and the names Wilt, Magic, Kareem and Worthy mean absolutely nothing.

These are the ones that are now putting away the hats, jerseys, foam fingers and packing up to leave and look for new colors to wear.

For the real Laker fans, this may not be a bad thing and is probably a case of good riddance.

Who knows where the bandwagon will take the thousands of misplaced fans. Maybe some will stop off in Phoenix, Denver or Utah. Many could find a home in Dallas, as the new followers of Dirk.

I would imagine that many will land in Chicago to now hail MVP Derrick Rose as the best player in the league.

In a weird twist, many will head north towards Boston. Remember, they do not know that for a true Laker fan, this is the worst change of allegiance they could make. They don't know this because they don't remember the days of Russell vs. Chamberlain or Magic vs. Bird.

Although we will not really know the destination of most fans until the end of the playoffs, it is a good bet that most will continue to follow LeBron James to Miami as some did at the start of the season.

The numbers will only increase if they win the title.

As a league, the NBA won't complain about the coming movement. Although they would take the diplomatic route and never admit it, they won't mind if more attention is paid to teams in the East, and the overall balance of power shifts that direction.

I am sure that the league wants nothing more than to see the fan bases of teams in the major Eastern cities grow in popularity across the nation.

Imagine another super team to compete with the Heat in one of the bigger cities like New York, New Jersey, Chicago or even Atlanta. They would have increased marketing opportunities and would not have to depend so much on the smaller, more isolated markets that tend to be in the West.

If the league understands this principle, there will be a quiet effort to steer these new misguided fans to other teams. I would be willing to bet that there would be increased marketing so that the fence sitting fans will move towards the big Eastern Conference teams.

What will the television schedules be next year? Look for the big games to be the ones played by the Heat, Bulls and maybe even the Knicks.

Which players will be on the NBA commercials? I guarantee that they won't be from the Jazz, Nuggets, Kings or Warriors. These teams are in too small of markets and not the focus of the league.

It has been a while since the interest in the NBA has been in the East. One reason is that it strongly depends on who the most recent champion is.

When the Celtics won a title with the big three a few seasons ago, the buzz around the league momentarily surrounded Boston.

With the Lakers winning the next year, it quickly shifted back to Los Angeles.

It happens time and time again. It will happen again this season, and is some regards has already started.

At the beginning of the season, many predicted that the Miami Heat would win it all. They picked up a lot of these fans fans who wanted to beat the rush and changed teams early in the year.

So where will all of these fair weather fans end up at the end of the season?

Could it be Dallas? Boston? Miami? Maybe some will stay in the same building and support Blake Griffin and the Clippers.

Maybe the Lakers do enough over the summer to rebound and derail the migration.

Maybe free agency and trades made by all teams will affect this more than we know at this point.

One thing is for certain: There will be many NBA fans purchasing a new jersey before the start of next season. Many of them will be for a team that they did not seem to like a week ago.

It will be interesting to watch, but as for how it actually shakes out, I guess we will just have to wait and see.