Lakers / Spurs preview, news, and pick

[Raji]

No. 1 Los Angeles Lakers vs. No. 3 San Antonio Spurs

Season series: 2-2 SU, San Antonio 3-1 against the spread


If familiarity really does breed contempt, this series is going to be one heck of a battle. This marks the sixth time these two teams have met in the playoffs since 1999.

While the jerseys are the same, a lot of the names on the back have changed, especially for the guys in purple and gold. These Lakers are quicker and more athletic than they’ve been in years, which means Kobe Bryant is finally happy.

Happy enough, in fact, that he handed out watches that ran him 10 large apiece to all of his teammates after being named the league’s MVP.

A happy Kobe is an unstoppable Kobe. Bryant has put up at least 30 points in eight of Los Angeles’ 10 playoff games despite being slowed by a bad back for a few of those. Now he says he’s 100 percent, just in time to face off with arguably the league’s best perimeter defender in Bruce Bowen.

This time though, Kobe has some serious help at the offensive end with Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom inside and Derek Fisher patrolling the perimeter.

Meanwhile, you Spurs fans won’t want to admit it, but we might be finally seeing league’s oldest team with an average age of 31.6 years start to show its miles. The up-and-coming Hornets gave San Antonio everything it could deal with by pushing the tempo and simply out-hustling the Spurs through much of the last series. Los Angeles is young enough and has a deep enough bench to do the same thing.

I’m not saying the Spurs aren’t still one of the league’s elite teams because they can still dominate certain (or most) teams simply with the matchup problems their lineup creates for opposing teams. But the Lakers aren’t one of those teams. They should have enough size down low to deal with Tim Duncan, who just doesn’t look like he can take control of a series anymore, and decent perimeter defending options to make life difficult for Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker.

Plus, the Lakers have Kobe Bryant and right now - he’s worth at least a couple wins on his own.



Pick: Lakers in six games

Raji

[Raji]

SAN ANTONIO (AP) -The San Antonio Spurs' departure from New Orleans after winning Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinals was delayed several hours after their plane had mechanical problems, the team said Tuesday.

The team could not find hotel rooms in the city, so the players had to sleep on the plane, team spokesman Cliff Puchalski said.

''We slept on the plane - as much as you can sleep,'' Puchalski said. ''We tried to keep some normal semblance of order.''

The Spurs eliminated the Hornets 91-82 in Game 7 Monday night, then went straight to Los Angeles, where they play the Lakers in Game 1 of the conference finals on Wednesday.

Puchalski said the team slept on the plane with the mechanical problems before boarding another plane that was brought in from Minneapolis. The team took off about 6:30 a.m. Central time, Puchalski said, and landed in Los Angeles about four hours later.

The team was not practicing Tuesday.

Raji

[Raji]

San Antonio at L.A. Lakers (-6 ½, 196)

When one of the only positives to come out of San Antonio’s series with New Orleans was its Game 7 win on the road, it’s hard to get overly excited about the Spurs in Game 1 against a rested Lakers team.

“I'm sure glad that's over," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich told reporters after Game 7. "The Hornets are an unbelievably tough team. I don't think there's any doubt their time will come, and we are thrilled to get out of here with a victory."

Understandably so. The Spurs clawed back from a 2-0 deficit and closed the series on the road, something every team left in the playoffs is having a tough time with. But that doesn’t erase the fact that it was New Orleans, not San Antonio, which looked like the better team top to bottom over the past couple of weeks.

Maybe Game 7 woke up San Antonio’s grizzled veterans – then again, maybe it took a lot of gas out of the Spurs’ tank.

Pick: Lakers

Raji

[DrPicker]

I agree with you, I dont think the Spurs have the youth to recover from that series with the hornets and just like the last round I think they will get crushed in this first game. The lakers are very good, but i wouldnt put it past the spurs to make it a 7 game series. Popavich is one of the best coaches ever and is underated. The spurs have a group of veterans who know how to play the game. But they wont win this first one.

[Bobby O'Shea]

I really want to count out the Spurs too and was surprised when they beat the Hornets but every time someone counts them out they seem to raise to the occasion. They have tons of experience.

I am on the Spurs +7.5

rust set in for the Pistons maybe the same for the lakers?

Bobby O