That's assuming the Lakers are healthier in the second round than they are in the first. With Bynum, there are no guarantees. Interesting side note: Kobe, Gasol, Odom, Artest and Fisher have all played 82 games this year, and all but Odom have started all 82 games. The karma disparity between the Lakers and Blazers is, as ever, incredibly depressing.
I agree with magnifier, in that, if we are going to have to play the Flakers, and it looks like we are if we are going to get to the finals, I would rather play them in the first round. I think they are temporarily as vulnerable as they are going to be, they will reach their stride after the first round, and they will be more rested than the Blazers in the second round. Then there is our 'luck.' If either team is going to get dinged up in the first round....
All this talk about second round strategy is premature. If we get out of the first round, I'll consider this season a rousing success. One things for sure, I can guarantee you that nobody in the Portland locker room is talking about the plusses and minuses of facing LA in the next round... As far as "when is the best time to face LA" is concerned, the correct answer is "nobody fucking knows". Anything can happen between now and the next round. NO could put up a bigger fight than expected. Kobe could get hurt. All of this bellyaching over when we "should" face them is making my belly ache.
Actually it's "next season because they lost to NO in the first round"; that would definitely be the best time in my book.
So true! I stand corrected. EDIT: Of course, that would probably imply that the Hornets had access to some kind of cheat code, which would be problematic for us...
I have 2 options. 1. Read 165 posts. 2. Ask you to make a long summary when you bump an old thread, so that we won't have to review it.