Last night, the reigning NBA champions looked like anything but, in an embarrassing loss to the Dallas Mavericks that had even the most casual basketball fans shaking their heads. Lazy defense, awful offense, and a physical atmosphere that seemed more like the WWF than an NBA playoff game, brought down the mighty Lakers with a score of 122-86. Now the Lakers find themselves in the unexpected position of an early end to their season, while scratching their heads in bewilderment of what may have gone wrong.
In retrospect, the Lakers have seemed vulnerable all year. But their performance in this all important post-season exposed weaknesses and said volumes about their ability to remain an elite force. About 14 minutes into the game, Kobe and company trailed by 5 points. But less than 5 minutes after that, they trailed by 18. During a stretch in the 2nd period, the Lakers were so bad that Phil Jackson was forced to call 2 full timeouts and a 20. By the time Lakers big men Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom were both ejected after needless flagrant fouls, it seemed as though the writing was on the wall and the Lakers had thrown in the towel.
Lakers great Magic Johnson said over the weekend that he believes it may be time for Lakers owner Jerry Buss to blow up the team and start over. With this humiliating loss and the exit of their Hall of Fame coach, this just might be the perfect time for the L.A. Lakers to push the reset button.
I'll keep this short because the truth is I've never been an *NBA* fan. There has always been certain players I enjoy watching play the game (no matter their team) and that's pretty much it. Okay. First: Never thought I'd see the Lakers (of all teams) lose in such an embarrasing and classLESS fashion. Never been a Kobe fan. But I've always respected his skills and talent. IMO, he's the only one who conducted himself with dignity throughout the playoffs, both in terms of how he played (with heart) and his temperament.Second: The Mavs did an outstanding job and props to them on the sweep!