For anyone retarded enough to think the Suns have a chance in hell against the Lakers, I think this analysis says it well:
PLAYERS TO WATCH
LAKERS: Andrew Bynum
So much of this series will come down to size versus speed. If Bynum can make himself a force in the paint, produce enough offense and rebounding that the Suns will have to play something closer to a true center than Amare Stoudemire, then the Lakers’ length will have tilted the style in their favor. However, if Bynum can be contained by the likes of a Stoudemire or one of the Suns’ pseudo-big men, then it will be off to the races for Phoenix, with the Lakers likely forced to move Pau Gasol into the middle and bring Lamar Odom into the game. Bynum hardly was overwhelming at the close of the Jazz series.
SUNS: Steve Nash
While Utah’s Deron Williams might well have emerged as the game’s preeminent point guard this season, he does not play anywhere close to the pace of first-round Lakers foe Russell Westbrook, who created significant issues for the Lakers’ defense. Now the quickness game is back, which again raises questions when it comes to Derek Fisher’s ability to provide containment. While there will be plenty of support at the rim defensively for the Lakers, Nash is as good as any little man in the game when it comes to pulling up and scoring before that deterrence can become an issue. Nash set the tone against the Spurs and will have to do the same from the outset against the Lakers.
INTANGIBLES
LAKERS: While Showtime hasn’t exactly gone slow time, the Lakers are all about the halfcourt, with as many quality finishers as anyone in the league. And it’s not as if the Suns are loaded with defensive stoppers. No disrespect to Grant Hill, but don’t think that Kobe is exactly quaking about that potential defensive matchup. And who in the halfcourt has the guile to contain Gasol on the Suns’ front line? But if the Suns can push the pace, there could be another benefit. The Lakers are not particularly deep beyond Odom’s sixth-man role that has been increased due to the uncertainty surrounding Bynum. We’re not ready to say that Phil Jackson might school Alvin Gentry, but until this season, a Gentry-coached team had never won a playoff series.
SUNS: The challenge will be similar to the one against the Spurs, putting enough points on the board to try to force the opposition out of its halfcourt comfort zone. But almost every matchup will be an upgrade for the Suns from the Spurs series, save for perhaps at point guard. The competition level has stiffened in each of the first two rounds, but it still is questionable whether Phoenix is prepared for anything like this. Only now will we be able to measure whether the likes of Jason Richardson, Jared Dudley and Goran Dragic are up to the moment. Having a contributing Robin Lopez wouldn’t hurt, either.
OUTLOOK
This is no accidental matchup. Over the second half of the season, these were the two best teams in the Western Conference.
Any doubts created by the Lakers in the first round against the Thunder were quickly erased in the second round against the Jazz. Similarly, the Suns hit their stride in the second round against the Spurs, after an uneven first round against the Trail Blazers.
The question now is whether the Suns are in a just-glad-to-be-here state, whether, as odd as it sounds, the series against the Spurs created a sense of overconfidence, that no matter what the deficit, it could be overcome.
At the primary scoring positions, Kobe Bryant is a lot better than Jason Richardson. The question is whether Amare Stoudemire can outscore Pau Gasol on the front line.
It will be interesting to see if the Lakers try to throw Ron Artest’s muscle at Stoudemire at times, for a change-of-pace look, or whether the less-physical approaches of Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom will be the norm.
The Suns consistently stayed small against the Spurs. But now is a time when Robin Lopez will be needed, when Channing Frye will have to play big, and when Louis Amundson will have to be particularly active.
PREDICTION
The playoffs are all about matchups, and the Suns created advantages at just about every position against the Spurs. It is difficult to identify many, if any, edges against the Lakers beyond the one at point guard. The Lakers are close enough to a repeat that they can smell it. There isn’t much scent of an upset here. Lakers in six.
