LAKERS NBA FINALS DREAM MATCHUP
June 16, 2009 by Andy Socrates
The Los Angeles Lakers are the 2009 NBA Champions, but the players are still hungry for more rings. If the Lakers can re-sign both Lamar Odom and Trevor Ariza this summer, they will again be favorite to win it all next year. The Black Mamba won his fourth ring and the first without Shaq, but don’t count out his desire to win more.
The NBA Finals MVP played a great series and averaged 32.4 points a game. If he wants to be mentioned in the pantheon of great players next to Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan, he needs to win more championships with the Lakers. Bryant proved his resillency and leadership all year long starting with leading the USA team to an Olympic gold medal and now leading the Lakers to the franchise’s 15th championship. He will turn 31 this summer and has a couple more years in his prime. Pau Gasol was the most consistent player in the Finals averaging an eye-popping 18.6 points on 12 shots a game and 60% shooting. With this deadly one-two combo the Lakers are a force to be reckoned with for the next few years.
Phil Jackson has become the winningest coach with ten rings surpassing the nine rings won by Red Auerbach with the Celtics. Not that he needs to, Jackson will look to cement his legacy by adding one or two more rings to his collection. Once a Phil Jackson team has won it’s first championship, the team historically goes on to threepeat. This has happened three times in Phil’s career. Let’s see if that can happen again with this group of Lakers.
Los Angeles Lakers vs. Cleveland Cavaliers
All season, the NBA was salivating over a possible Kobe-Lebron matchup during this year’s finals. The airwaves were bombarded with Kobe-Lebron commercials by Nike and VItamin Water. But imagine the possibility of a Kobe vs. Lebron and Shaq matchup next year instead. This would give writers and companies even more fodder to talk about. Given that Shaq is in his final year on contract, it is highly likely that he will be traded to the Cavs and make this dream match-up possible. Kobe would love to prevent Shaq from winning his fifth ring and LeBron from winning his first ring. Critics should talk about how Shaq has never won a ring without a superstar guard like Kobe or Dwayne Wade. He may be the most dominant big man ever to play the game, but he has not shown he can lead a team by himself to victory.
Los Angeles Lakers vs Boston Celtics
The heated rivalry of the 1980s between Johnson and Larry Bird was renewed last year by Bryant and Kevin Garnett. The Lakers want an opportunity to exorcise the demons of a 39-point loss in last year’s finals and would love to face the Celtics again. If the Celtics can stay healthy with the Big Four of Garnett, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo, they will be one of the favorites in the East to come out on top again. A Grizzled Lakers team vs. a veteran Celtics would be a great match-up to watch in the Finals that will be sure to go the distance to seven games. Bryant has already shown that he is the best player in the game today but he can prove it again to silence Pierce’s comments last summer that he was the best in the game.
Whatever the matchups come next year, the Lakers can savor the one they won this year. Kobe has a huge monkey off his back and will play even better now that he has proved he can win without another Hall of Famer. Odom and Gasol have tasted their first championship, and will be hungry for more to cement their own legacies as great players. We’ll see if this Lakers team has what it takes to three-peat.
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