Lakers End an Up and Down Regular Season

The Kobe Bryant-dominated Lakers go into the Playoffs following a season of injuries, historic losing streaks, over and underachieving, and some truly incredible performances by the new number 24. The Lakers finished the 2006-2007 Regular Season at 42-40 with the 7th seed in the Western Conference Playoffs. Last season the team finished 45-37 with the 6th seed in the West.

So are they worst than last year? On paper, they still look better to me. I gave Mitch Kupchak above average marks for his off-seasons moves and they Lakers looked improved at almost every position on the floor. The first 30 games of the season, the team played like one of the elite teams in the league. Jordan Farmar appeared to be the point guard of the future with impressive moves for a rookie, Andrew Bynum was much improved over last season and had All-Star stats for the first twenty games, Maurice Evans played solid and looked like a steal, Borat Radmanovich hit a few big shots, the bench had its moments, and they seemed like a team that was progressing and building off of the relative success of the previous season.

However, the second half of the season exposed the inconsistencies and weaknesses of this young team. Injuries to Kobe, Lamar, Kwame, Vlad, and others definitely hurt, but all NBA teams experience injuries during an 82 game season. The Lakers looked horrible towards the end of the season, producing a losing streak that coach Philip Jackson had never encountered. Even with the injuries and the young players, the team really lacked determination and relied too heavily on Kobe. Kobe, for his part, did not lack determination and went on the streak of scoring 50 points or more that was truly astonishing. It may have salvaged the season for the Lakers and put them in the playoffs, but it won't get Kobe the MVP award that he clearly has the ability the win. For that coveted honor, the Laker Team will have to win a lot more games.

So, where do the Lakers stand now, with the playoffs starting this weekend? A rematch from last year with Phoenix, who LA surprised by jumping out to a series lead before losing in 7 games. The Lakers would be lucky to take Phoenix to 7 games this year, but you never know when you have Kobe Bryant. Like the past few seasons, it will be the other key role players that will determine LA's success. Lamar will have to be aggressive and consistent, Kwame must be a solid presence in the middle and either Roni or Drew will have to step up against Amare Stoudemire who didn't play last year. As for the guards, you know that Bryant will bring it, but Smush and Jordan will have to be solid contributors and help contain Steve Nash who has a shot at winning his 3rd straight MVP, although it will probably be Dirk Nowitzki. The other guards besides Kobe will be key to the competitiveness of the team against running and gunning Phoenix. I would like to see Farmar return to his early season form and do for the Lakers what he did for the Bruins last year. It remains to be seen, but Phil did insert him into the starting line-up for the Lakers last two games which were both well-needed victories.

If the Lakers can take the Suns to 6 or 7 games it will be viewed by most as a minor moral victory and seemingly a repeat of last seasons results. In the event that the Lakers beat Phoenix, they would be looked upon as overachievers. Then they would have to get through the likes of Dallas and/or San Antonio to make it to the Finals. That, of course, is highly unlikely, but they would be considered contenders if they could do it. In all likelihood, this season will look like a repeat of last year.

Is Kupchak building a championship team? At some points in this season, they looked like contenders that were maybe just one small piece away from being championship caliber, but at other times they looked like one of the worst teams in the league and most of the players seemed expendable. Kobe was the only All-Star, even though Lamar has the talent to be one every year, and the rest of team are basically role players with no bona fide star. Hopefully, one of the younger players will develop into the reliable, All-Star quality teammate to compliment Kobe's Super Stardom. If not, Mitch will have to make a trade or sign a big free agent to get this team to the next level.

I think this Laker squad can pull it together and do a little damage in the Playoffs if they get back to early season form, but I'm anticipating essentially the same outcome as last season. Maybe it will be like when the Lakers lost to the Jazz two years in a row and then came back the next season and won the first of three championships in a row. Next year is Phil's last season under contract, so I'm expecting big things.

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