Here it is. My first pick of the post season. I really wanted to make a pick on OKC yesterday but the defending champs aren't exactly soft anymore; and actually did hold their own against the Thunder last night. I'm not going to take statistics into account because playing in the playoffs is not the same as the regular season. Although the averages of each team and player does give a picture or an idea of how they are going to do during post-season, it still doesn't dictate who's going to win. Some players choke, some players excel under pressure, some players get injured the very first game so it's very hard to use the numbers to predict a winner. The three guys in the picture above (Pau Gasol, Kobe Bryant, Andrew Bynum) I believe are the players that are going to make the Lakers levels above average teams like the Nuggets. I might have an old school mentality when it comes to basketball. I would personally rather have two all star big men than one elite scorer. But what happens when you have both? Well shit, you get a team that's going to be hard to beat in the playoffs despite missing Ron Artest for the next 6 games due to the elbow to James Harden's dome. I think the Lakers are going to be in sync tonight. Kobe and I (in my mind at least) believe that if there's such thing as a best shot to win a 6th ring, this is the year to do it. Kobe's going to come out with a good performance tonight, backed up by his two big men in Andrew Bynum, who has been playing exceptional basketball lately and is also the best center in the league and Pau Gasol who is one of the smoothest power forwards to play the game. The big men are going to give the Nuggets problem in the paint as I don't think Javale McGee can contain Bynum. As the playoffs get deeper into the series, I will go more in depth in analyzing the games. I see the Lakers getting the W and covering a -4.5 spread.
Result: Laker basketball has got to be one of the funnest to watch. Andrew Bynum is a powerful center who can rebound very well and can score around the basket. Along to go with his board and scoring skill set, today he also got 10 blocks to complete the first triple double in Lakers playoff history since Magic Johnson. Bynum had 10 points, 13 rebounds and 10 blocks. Gasol messed around and almost got a triple double ending with 13 points, 8 boards and 8 assists. The poetry in Gasol's game, especially to his partner big-man is such a beautiful thing to watch. Kobe Bryant ended with 31, 5 boards and 4 assists. Steve Blake also came off the bench scoring 3 from long distance and Jordan Hill came off the bench scoring 10. As a team the Lakers shot 50% from the field, 35% from 3, grabbing 52 rebounds and 15 blocks to Denver Nuggets' 36% from the field, 29% from distance, and 46 rebounds. Ty Lawson went 3/11 from the field, the same as Afflalo and Gallinari lead the scoring with 19. The Lakers were a force in the paint, and it's hard for Denver to get in the lane for easy baskets. Kobe Bryant was on the same page as my prediction today dropping 31, and the big men proved to be dominant against the undersized or not as skilled big men.
Win (13-5-1)
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