<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">It has come to this in the NBA's Western Conference: If you had to choose between the Warriors and Lakers as a team worthy of playoff exposure, you'd throw "The Kobe Bryant Show" right out the window. Judging by the Lakers' colossal fade -- seven straight losses, their worst showing in 11 years -- it won't be an issue for either team. In a sweet triumph for justice and common decency, Bryant is getting exactly what he deserved for engineering the demise of a once-proud franchise. Even if the Lakers were to stage a miraculous charge into the No. 8 playoff spot, they wouldn't be worth the value of a $2 ticket. That is hardly the case with the rejuvenated Warriors, who suddenly are a hot topic around the league. They are dangerous, they are fun to watch, and for the first time in recent memory, they have a future. Baron Davis brought big-city basketball to the Warriors and marquee value. Aside from Jason Richardson, who needed no help, everyone on the team looks better alongside Davis. Who knows what got into Mike Dunleavy, perpetrator of a classic temper tantrum during the Dallas game Wednesday night, but it was a strange and wonderful sight for fans put off by his poker-faced demeanor. The Warriors have long roads to travel before they can even fantasize about the playoffs, but at least they're headed somewhere. Their fans -- by far the most patient and loyal in the league -- have a reason to believe. The Lakers are a flat-out wasteland. </div> Source
