Lakers vs Thunder (1 vs 8)

The Lakers had a terrible way of ending the season, basically going sub .500. I believe they were 4-7 in their last 11 games. Pretty pathetic for a team trying to win the championship. The first problem for the Lakers is health. Bynum has been out as well as other guys during the season. The main guy, Kobe, has had his play greatly affected by his health. I've seen Kobe play through injuries before. The difference is Kobe was still tremendous. Kobe's injury to his finger has made him mortal. He is shooting some pathetic percentages, such as 30%. This is awful in any way you look at it. I think someone was saying Phil was implying or stating Kobe needs to distribute and get the ball around more. If your shooting less than normal, you should pass it out more. I agree. Kobe is shooting way under normal. Even open or regular shots he makes most of the time are missing. That is one of the main problems. Kobe is not quite near Kobe. The second thing is that the Lakers depth is minimal. That used to be one of their strong points. Now its basically up to the starting 5. Lamar is so up and down this year. Ron can't make a shot if his life depended on it. Artest has played some great defense as of late. He is doing a great job with Durant at times as well. The problem is its offset by his terrible shooting (such as 1 made 3 pt in 8 attempts). They swing it to him for an open shot or he takes a terrible shot which of course doesn't go in. I am happy with his defense, absolutely dominant at certain times. The thing with Ariza was he had solid defense and a solid shot that went in at a consistent basis. Pau has been off this year. He hasn't shown his same consistent greatness. All these factors point to the Lakers falling this year. Oklahoma has been in both games so far. They had chances to win it. Oklahoma, however, is a very strong 8 seed. One of the best maybe. In normal situations, they would probably be a number 4 or 5 seed.  Kevin Durant is amazing and I can't say enough about him. He is definitely the future of the NBA. Oklahoma has a lot of great young players. Russell Westbrook is another favorite of mine. Very good player. Oklahoma should be a team that will continue to get better and be in contention in the next years. Oklahoma does have a chance I believe to beat the Lakers in the first round. If the Lakers don't give their absolute best, Oklahoma has a great chance to take the series. The Lakers need to prove they can be a dominant offensive and defensive team. Their defense has looked great at times, but their offense still not as great as I'd like to see. My feeling is the Lakers will be win the series.