Warning: The Lakers aren't invincible
APRIL 27, 2000

Fan's View

Robert Seale/TSN
Have Kobe and the Lakers matured enough to win it all?
get this photo

Today, sports fan Steve Schindler explains why the Lakers winning it all is not a sure thing.

The man who won most of the recent NBA championships is now leading the team that hasn't won any in recent memory. I am referring to Zen Master Phil Jackson, coach of the Los Angeles Lakers.

A lot of Hot Angeles air came out of LA the last few seasons, including talk of walks through postseason schedules and talk of monster Shaq and nimble Obewon Kobe. It was mostly talk and not enough walk. Early exits were had by all.

Now we're supposed to believe that Obewon is the most improved player in the league? Well, he needed to improve. The old Kobe was losing, and not just a little. He lost in entire playoff series chunks.

And how about that giant the Lakers stole from Orlando a few years ago? He wasn't serving playoff grief; he was getting served his head. Monster Shaq was getting monster-mashed into giant trays full of roundball hors d'oeuvres. Bet he didn't like the taste of that.

Take notice that the Lakers are trying to renew some of their past greatness. They recently celebrated their greatest moments in Laker history with a rousing halftime ceremony in Los Angeles.

I couldn't help but notice that the most recent greatness LA achieved was back in 1988. Back-to-back rings. Big Deal! What have you done for me lately? Can you say, "Oh and four, show me the door?"

Now, the Zen Master cometh. Professor Phil from the raging Bulls. The man with the brain as big as Illinois. He could figure things out. He could make Shaq find the rack. He could make Obewon forget he was the lowly one. He would make six rings fit 10 fingers, with one hand tied behind his back. Sure.

OK, the Lakers seem like they are playing with a fire they never had before. Shaq is scoring 40 a night, and Kobe is almost averaging a triple-double. Big deal. That wasn't the playoffs, and this is.

Jackson the Zen Master already has begun applying his lock on the Spurs' psyches. Zen says he thinks the Spurs’ championship, from that last worn-out season, should wear an asterisk. He won't tell you why. He just says it was a different kind of year, as if it was won in an off-year when nobody else played. Ice Zen. Very cool.

Zen has blown into town and blown the Spurs away in the past with his smooth talk of how good the locals were. He masterfully put the pressure on the Spurs boys and snuck out with a win.

So, let's turn the tables on this guy from out West. The guy in the suit and the fancy gray vest. Maybe it was different last year because the Lakers didn't play. At all. Perhaps we should remind Zen of that. We also could bring up the fact that this current stable of Fakers, I mean Lakers, hasn't done much for anybody lately (not even since they got Shaq).

Sure, they walked over a bunch of semi-retired astronauts in Houston last year. And the year before, they talked some talk in Portland and Seattle. Then, they let some old geezers from Utah hoodwink them out of their hardware. Hardware they had ordered. Oops. Sorry. Wrong size! Fits Michael just fine, thank you.

Spurs coach Greg Popovich needs to fire up the brain cells and throw a few high-minded salvos at the Philster and his LA band of monks. Maybe fill their heads with visions of greatness. They aren't supposed to lose. How could they? What an upset that would be!

Then, let them eat some red hot coals when the Spurs land some swift and decisive blows to their lower cranial areas -- their egos.

Copyright © 2000 All rights reserved.