Western Conference Finals Preview - LA Lakers vs. Phoenix

Basketball Betting Lines

05/13/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Both the Phoenix Suns and Los Angeles Lakers must have thought they were getting paid by the hour in the second round of the NBA playoffs.

The result was a pair of sweeps with the Suns besting their long-time nemesis, the San Antonio Spurs, and the defending NBA champion Lakers handing their annual shellacking to the Utah Jazz.

The Pacific Division rivals are now on a collision course for conference supremacy as the West finals get underway at Staples Center on Monday night.

Steve Nash could barely see from his right eye after being stitched up on Sunday, but the veteran point guard scored half of his 20 points in the fourth quarter as the Suns beat San Antonio, 107-101, to sweep their Western Conference semifinal set.

"I think the great thing about us this year is we have the close out instinct," All-Star forward Amare Stoudemire said. "We treated Game 4 as if it was the first game of the series."

Phoenix, which has never captured an NBA title, is in the conference finals for the first time since 2006, when the Suns lost to the Dallas Mavericks. Phoenix hasn't made it to the NBA Finals since 1993 when they fell in six games to the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls.

Nash took an inadvertent elbow above his right eye from a driving Tim Duncan midway through the third quarter in Game 4 but should be fine after eight days of rest.

"We have a week so I imagine the swelling will go down in a week or at least enough so I can see," Nash said after clinching. "I don't think I should be concerned about that."

The Lakers, meanwhile, dispensed of the Jazz a day after the Suns advanced when Pau Gasol poured in 33 points and pulled down 14 rebounds, as Los Angeles continued its march in a quest to repeat as NBA champions with a 111-96 win over Utah.

Kobe Bryant added 32 points for the top-seeded Lakers, who will be appearing in their third straight Western Conference final and are attempting to become the first repeat league champions since they won three in a row (2000-02) with the tandem that featured Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal. Bryant scored at least 30 points in every contest against the Jazz but Gasol was the catalyst in Game 4, going 12-of-18 from the field.

"We're improving as every game goes by," Gasol said. "That's something that is really satisfying. I'm looking forward to the next series and forward to a couple days of rest."

The sweep of the Jazz came after the Lakers were pushed to a tough six-game series win over Oklahoma City in the first round.

LA won three of four games vs. Phoenix in the regular season and won the Pacific Division by three games over the Suns.

"We're going to have to have a sustained effort from our bench to give us a little bit of support," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said of the upcoming matchup. "The Suns are a run-and-gun team. They generate a lot of points and you have to run with them to stay in the game."

In the postseason, the clubs have a long and storied history, meeting 11 times dating back to the 1969-70 season. The Lakers have won seven of those series but the Suns have rebounded to take four of the last five playoff sets between the two teams after dropping the first six. Phoenix has also taken the last two postseason matchups between the clubs, first round series in 2005-06 and '06-07.

LA and Phoenix have met twice previously in the Western Conference finals with the Lakers winning both, in 1984 and 1989.

"(The Suns) play extremely well and are playing with a lot of confidence," Gasol said. "It's going to be a tough series."

MATCHUPS:

POINT GUARD: The point guard matchup between Nash and Derek Fisher should be a clear advantage to Phoenix. Nash, the quarterback of the Suns' high-octane offense, is a proven winner and an unselfish teammate, with a knack for taking and making big shots. The game's best pure floor general, Nash has averaged 17.8 points and 9.0 assists in the first two rounds of the playoffs. He historically has had trouble with quick, penetrating guards on the defensive end but that shouldn't be a problem since Fisher is a standstill shooter these days.

It's easy to poke holes in Fisher's game and he is clearly the weak link of this Lakers team. The veteran lacks the quickness at this stage of his career to stick with the upper echelon point guards but few are willing to take more big shots down the stretch of a close game. Fisher has ice running through his veins late and turns from a detriment to a big-time positive as the clock ticks down.

EDGE: SUNS

SHOOTING GUARD: Jason Richardson is the barometer for any Phoenix success. The dynamic swingman leads the team in scoring in the postseason at 21.9 ppg. One of the NBA's best in transition, you know the Suns are running and gunning when Richardson is putting up big numbers at the offensive end.

As good as Richardson can be, he's no match for the Lakers' Bryant. An elite playmaker and finisher, Bryant again finished within the top five in scoring this season and ended up third in the MVP voting despite being banged-up. In Kobe's 13 seasons with the Lakers they have appeared in postseason play in all but one season (2004-05), and have reached the NBA Finals six times, winning championships in 2000, 2001, 2002 and 2009. Bryant is also the youngest player in NBA history to score 25,000 points and also moved past the legendary Jerry West to become the Lakers all-time leading scorer.

Perhaps more importantly, he remains the best closer in the game and is one of the two or three best defensive stoppers.

EDGE: LAKERS

CENTER: Phoenix has been without the services of starting center Robin Lopez, who is battling a nagging back injury. The 7-footer hasn't played since March 26 but has begun light workouts and the week-long hiatus before the start of this series will certainly help.

A bulging disk in Lopez's back has pinched a nerve and caused a loss of strength in his right leg. There is still no timetable for his return but Phoenix coach Alvin Gentry indicated Lopez could be back against the Lakers, where his length could greatly help the Suns against an LA front line that can feature three-near 7-footers in Andrew Bynum, Gasol and Lamar Odom.

"He looks a little bit better," Gentry said on Tuesday. "We've got basically six more days so we feel good about his progress continuing so that I think he'll be able to play."

Jarron Collins has been starting in Lopez's place but offers little other than a big body. Gentry would like to get Channing Frye, a much more skilled offensive player, as many minutes in the middle as possible but Frye is not much on the boards or as an interior defender.

LA's Bynum has a lot of talent and had been very solid in the postseason, averaging 10.3 points and 8.9 rebounds. No one questions Bynum's skills but a history of leg injuries and inconsistency is always lurking. That said, Bynum should be able to take advantage of the Suns' depleted situation in the pivot.

EDGE: LAKERS

SMALL FORWARD: Ron Artest spent the first round chasing Kevin Durant all over the floor and did a fine job. No one can stop the supremely gifted Durant but Artest forced him to work and that was the plan. With Durant in the rear view mirror, Artest was able to contribute on the offensive end a little more vs. Utah but his production with this Lakers team will always be measured on the defensive end.

Phoenix counters with Grant Hill, the veteran who finally made it out of the first round of the playoffs for the first time in his 15-year career. Once one of the best players in all of basketball before injuries took their toll, Hill is just a role player these says but he still possesses an elite basketball IQ and has been able to stay on the floor.

EDGE: EVEN

POWER FORWARD: A matchup of All-Stars here with Stoudemire and Gasol. Stoudemire offers far more athleticism and can destroy defenses with his powerful drive to the hoop and incredible leaping ability. He's also improved mightily on the defensive end.

"You want to talk about the growth of Amare Stoudemire. Two years ago he never would have stepped in to take the charge, (but now) he's bought in defensively," Former NBA coach Doug Collins said. "In fact he had a quote the other day where he said, 'I never realized that playing defense as a team could be so much fun.'"

Gasol, who missed a couple of practices this week with sinusitis, has been the perfect "Robin" to Bryant's "Batman" since the Lakers acquired his services during the 2007-08 campaign. The lanky Spaniard is LA's top rebounder and shot blocking threat and gives Jackson an imposing presence on the front line.

EDGE: EVEN

BENCH: Gentry is not afraid to dip into a very deep bench. As mentioned, Frye gets starter's minutes and can fill it up at times, as can reserve forward Jared Dudley. Leandro Barbosa is a former Sixth Man of the Year, and backup point Goran Dragic, as well as forward Louis Amundson, bring great energy to the floor.

Odom is a very gifted player that can beat you in a host of ways for LA. One of the NBA's best sixth men, Odom can take you from the inside or outside on the offensive end and torture you with his length as a defender. He's also the rare 6-foot-11 player that can handle the ball and beat you as a playmaker.

Jackson tends to get frustrated with his other bench players. Shannon Brown is a solid defender while Jordan Farmar offers some two-way skills in the backcourt. Luke Walton can also provide some energy at times.

EDGE: SUNS

COACHING: Gentry has done a spectacular job getting the Phoenix franchise back on track after the disastrous Terry Porter experiment.

"He's built the bench, he's established tremendous confidence in Amare Stoudemire. What he's done with Dragic is amazing," Collins said of Gentry. "They have a bench now, they're playing defense. Alvin Gentry has created a real culture (in Phoenix)."

That said, Jackson is one of the best professional coaches in the history of the game. The "Zen Master" has won 10 titles as a head coach and helped the Lakers become the first NBA franchise to 3,000 wins back in January.

Jackson is in his 10th season as head coach of the Lakers and has led the franchise to six Western Conference titles, and has the highest playoff winning percentage of any coach in league history. He passed legendary Celtics coach Red Auerbach with his 10th title last summer, and his resume is beyond reproach.

EDGE: LAKERS

PREDICTION: The Suns are far more athletic and deeper than Los Angeles but it's hard to bet against Kobe and the Lakers' length with Gasol, Odom and Bynum. Phoenix obviously wants to run and force Jackson away from major minutes for Odom and Bynum. The team that dictates the pace and forces the opposing coach to stray away from his usual rotation should come out on top.

The series should be a classic clash of styles with the Suns trying to run at every opportunity and the Lakers attempting to slow things down and turn it into a half-court game.

At some point, playoff basketball always comes down to who executes in their respective set offense better and that seems to be a no-brainer in this matchup.

LAKERS in 6