Shaq vs Yao in the first round is going to be amazing.... but how many laker fans in here are not comfortable playing Houston in the 1st round...L.A. has had a ton of trouble against them...I could see this series going 6-7 games... Playing Dallas would have been much easier.. In addition, the lakers have to play San Antonio in the 2nd round...Minnesota might have been an easier matchup
I agree. I am not to comfortable playing Houston because they always cause us troubles, and Yao owns Shaq so far. WE need to play defense and make smart decisions with the ball. I think this series will take the winner 6 games. P.S. Me and Laker_Fever will have the Previews for the Playoffs up as soon as possible, we know you Laker fans want to talk about the game.
Everbody worried about that. But I think of it as the playoffs, and Houston hasn't been their in 5 years and the Lakers got all the experience in the world. They would only be beating themselves if they were to lose, but I doubt that they will. I say the Lakers got them in 5 despite having trouble with them in the regular season.l
Its playoff time and Shaq knows that. I know he would step up and show Yao how to play this game. Perhaps they will need 5 or mayby 6 games but dont see much trouble with this. Could someone explain to me why did the Lakers had some much trouble with the Rockets this season?? Is it all cause of Yao??
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting notMuchgame:</div><div class="quote_post">Shaq vs Yao in the first round is going to be amazing.... but how many laker fans in here are not comfortable playing Houston in the 1st round...L.A. has had a ton of trouble against them...I could see this series going 6-7 games... Playing Dallas would have been much easier.. In addition, the lakers have to play San Antonio in the 2nd round...Minnesota might have been an easier matchup</div> I'm very comfortable playing the Rockets in the first round. A much better matchup for us since we don't have to play the Mavericks who are a running team. Dallas' style of offense is their transitional game, and they could definitely run us out of the building with the old veteran legs we have on this team. The Houston Rockets can no way beat the Lakers, or even make this series close. The only way they could possibly make this a series is if Steve Francis stops his selfish play, and actually committs to being a point guard, and if Yao Ming has spectacular games, which definitely won't happen knowing how Shaq contained him in the last meeting at Los Angeles. This is why Payton and Malone came to Los Angeles. To win an NBA championship. And I sure will guarantee these two men will come out hungry, determined, and focused to do all they can to make a Finals appearance and not lose in the first round. With all this said, I say the Lakers will win this series 4-1. The team to worry about is San Antonio. Last time in Los Angeles, they used Parker and Ginobili so well, it took the Lakers off balance. And they have an advantage the Lakers don't have. Speed and quickness. With their young, fresh legs they easily picked apart the Lakers in their transitional game, and they penetrated to the basket whenever they wanted without hardly being stopped by their defenders. And with Malone's injury, and who knows how long he'll be out, who's gonna defend Tim Duncan? that's the biggest question. All in all, this should be a exciting playoff year. And I hope it's our Lakers that's the last team standing.
The Lakers are going to have to fight hard for every win in every series. I believe this will be their hardest trip to the finals if they do in fact make it. I believe the Rockets are capable of the upset here. Yao will need a huge series. Than the Lakers will have the red hot Spurs in the second round. I believe the Spurs will win this series once again.
Realistically speaking, the Lakers ought to be able to finish off this series in no more than 6 games. But if Van Gundy gets the Rockets to play the way they're capable of, the upset is quite possible. Jim Jackson and Cat Mobley doubling up on Kobe can take him out of his game, and we all know about the Yao-Shaq matchup. Yao takes these matchups personally because of last season, and Shaq always comes in with something to prove. That could actually work against the Lakers, Shaq coming in with a vengeance, since the Lakers need to take advantage of Karl Malone to win the series. If Shaq tries to dominate, Malone will get isolated, and the Lakers lose their edge. And Francis always likes to go wild against the Lakers, so this matchup is a lot closer than most fans probably think. I personally think it would be great if the Rockets got to the second round and gained some valuable experience. I see them as a title contender in 3-4 years.
Lakers will sweep there ass... VERY REALISTICALLY SPEAKING.. Kobe is red-hot going into playoffs and will be even MORE focused in the playoffs. Shaq is fokked up going in to the playoffs..but he will be the dominating self in the playoffs..he knows he wants the ring so he will do everything about it. And they will not be able to contain KOBE nor will they be able to contain SHAQ.. Look out for GP and DF..they're going in pretty hot to.. And Shaq isn't the only one having to prove something..Kobe will be willing to prove he can step his level up (even higher) and silence the critics!!
This is not going to be very difficult for the lakers, but it is not going to be a walk in the park. They need to utilize all of the they have. But like StarMan85 said, if the team plays to their potential, We could see the rockets win this series. Shaq will really need to be active in this series as i think he will. Kobe will also need to play the at the level he was/ has been playing for the past 2 games. I predict steve francis to have a good series so Gary will need to live up to his nickname. i just hope malone will not be out for more than 3 games. I say lakers in 5/6 games.
Lakers sweeping Houston?! You gotta be kidding me. If there's someone who can go toe to toe with Shaq, it's Yao. Oh and throw in Cato for banging purposes. Oh and if in case you haven't noticed, the Rockets are defense minded enough to stop the Lakers and they have their share of scorers who can light it up. I'm not saying that this is a gimme for Houston. But I'll be worried if I'm a Lakers fan.
I think this series will see 6 games with the Lakers taking it in 6. I'm not exactly sure if the Rockets can win this series. The Lakers always step it up in the playoffs. They always play at a level higher than most people can get to. Plus, Kobe is focused right now. He's been on an extreme roll as of late and that's not good for the Rockets. The Rockets will be needing a HUGE series from Yao to make this a competetive series at all. If he just rolls over and lets Shaq kill him offensively, they won't stand a chance. He needs to commit defensively against Shaq and not give up stupid fouls. Plus, they need him on the court so he might have to play more minutes than he is accustomed to. But, I just don't see the Rockets winning. This is their first trip to the playoffs in 5 years. That fact in itself might not be good because they may have forgotten what it was like, whereas the Lakers are used to this stage. I see the Lakers in 6.
i dont know, but as long as lakers win, it all that matters. i have 40 dollars riding on them. I live in houston, i want houston to win. But i have to be the smart gambler and put it on lakers.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting notMuchgame:</div><div class="quote_post">Shaq vs Yao in the first round is going to be amazing.... but how many laker fans in here are not comfortable playing Houston in the 1st round...L.A. has had a ton of trouble against them...I could see this series going 6-7 games... Playing Dallas would have been much easier.. In addition, the lakers have to play San Antonio in the 2nd round...Minnesota might have been an easier matchup</div> All true, but right now do you think the yao vs. shaq matchup was amazing? imo not even close to what i would have expected...
