The Los Angeles Lakers versus the San Antonio Spurs present an interesting matchup for the 2008 NBA Western Division championship.  Many observers of the basketball world were predicting the demise of the Spurs.  So much was made of Chris Paul and the New Orleans Hornets that for a minute I thought they were going to just hand the entire NBA Championship to the Hornets.  The Spurs managed to “survive” the powerful Hornets and now they have the Lakers waiting for them in Los Angeles.  The Lakers will carry the home court advantage in the series and they have a tremendous fan base, as did the Hornets.  To add to the home court advantage, the Spurs had problems getting out of New Orleans after game 7.  The did not actually leave New Orleans until Tuesday morning following Monday nights matchup.  The Spurs were not sleeping peacefully in their beds.  No, they were crammed into a plane and trying to sleep uncomfortably in those undersized seats.

The key to this series will be the big match-up in the post.  I know, I know, what about Kobe?  Kobe is the MVP this year and for good reason.  He is one of the premier players, if not the premier player, in the NBA.  Given that, Kobe will score.  That’s what Kobe does. 

How will Pau Gasol match-up with Tim Duncan? That is the big key, in my opinion, of this series.  Gasol has made one playoff appearance with the Grizzlies and they were one and done.  Tim Duncan has been in numerous playoff games and owns three NBA championship rings.  When the pressure is on and the lights are bright, Duncan will come through as he has done consistently in the past.  What will Gasol do?  I like Gasol.  He is a good player and he has been an invaluable addition to the Lakers.  But he does lack playoff experience.

The other interesting match-up will Tony Parker and Derek Fisher.  They both have playoff experience. They both are excellent ball players.  I like Fish but you have to wonder if he can keep up with the speed of Tony Parker. 

One more key match-up that many people overlook is the coaches. Phil Jackson versus Greg Popovich.  They both have playoff experience. They both have championship experience.  I give a slight edge, and I mean ever so slight, to Phil Jackson in this match-up.

We will have another game like the one in game 5 of the 2004 playoffs?  You may remember that Tim Duncan hit a jumper late in the game with time almost gone to give the Spurs the lead.  However, the Lakers ran the famous inbound play with Derek Fisher coming off of a curl and hitting a big 3 point shot to win the game.  I would love to see another game like that one.

However, when you look at the overall experience of both teams I believe the Spurs will come out on top.