Are the Lakers still 'legit' title contenders?

farzi · Post #61 » by **farzi** » Sat Apr 12, 2008 7:23 am

dcash4 wrote:11.5 is the league leader as far as power forwards (duncan). if you go by 82games.com take on the position players play, lamar is actually tied with carlos boozer for best rebounding power forward.

if you count all positions, lamar is tied for 9th. this is all while playing 35 games next to bynum's 10.2 rpg and 24 games next to gasol's 8.4 rpg.

point is lamar as an "average rebounder" is laughable.

I agree with you that he's well above average.

B-Scott · Post #62 » by **B-Scott** » Sat Apr 12, 2008 8:12 am

I think the Lakers are contenders to get to the Finals, but matchups play a key role. I think the 1# seed is the easier path for them getting to the WCF and having a shot to make it to the finals.

They would get Denver 1st round and most likely a team like Utah or the Hornets 2nd round.

Post #63 » by **Flash3** » Sun Apr 13, 2008 7:36 pm

^Match-ups are huge in the playoffs. They are some teams that just don't match up well against certain teams; last season it was GoldenState and Dallas, most notably and this season you have Phoenix/Utah and New Orleans/Utah.

JordansBulls · Post #64 » by **JordansBulls** » Sun Apr 13, 2008 7:43 pm

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/st ... ons/080326

If the Lakers are healthy and running on all cylinders, they have the highest ceiling of any playoff team. ... Of course, we don't know if they're healthy yet, so all bets are off. ... They're most vulnerable in Round 1 as they're working back Bynum and Gasol into the rotation, which is what makes a potential Lakers-Warriors series so damned tantalizing.