Less than a dozen games left to go, and then the Lakers will look to defend a title for the first time since 2001-2002.
Entire books have been written about the difficulties inherent to climbing the mountain one season, and then having the focus, ability, and good fortune necessary to climb it again the next.
The Lakers are a uniquely talented team whose coaching, on-the-court chemistry, passing skills, basketball IQ, and late-game closing ability are rarely matched, and more infrequently surpassed.
But will it be enough?
Dr. Trade has spent the last two weeks granting free—and unsolicited—advice for various teams, their offseasons, and playoffs—or lack thereof. (These wide ranging articles can be found here.)
Now, let's leave the followers behind, and spend some time with the defending champs.
Coaches and players alike will sell the same mantra of, "we don't care who we play in the next round. What matters is that we play our game."
Yet, we all know that every team most certainly has opponents who they would rather not have to see again in the postseason.
The team knows that. The opponents know that. The fans know that.
Let's take a loo ...
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Article written by Dr. Trade
The L.A. Lakers’ Best (And Worst) Case Playoff Matchups
March 25th, 2010 by Dr. Trade Leave a reply »
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