Who Do You Want? Round I (Part II)

by Josh Tucker on Apr 14, 2009 5:48 AM PDT

It seems that in my previous post, I failed to notice that New Orleans' loss to Houston last night puts them in a tie with Dallas, and thus, also in the mix as a potential first round opponent for the Lakers.

Over at the OC Register Lakers Blog, Kevin Ding breaks down the various possible scenarios, noting that a win in LA and a loss by either the Hornets (playing the Spurs) or the Mavericks (playing the Rockets) would allow the Jazz to avoid the Lakers in the first round.

So let's try this again: Vote below to let us know who you want to face. Vote in the right sidebar to let us know why.

Poll

Which team is your preferred Lakers opponent for the first round of the Playoffs?

Utah Jazz

63 votes

Dallas Mavericks

101 votes

New Orleans Hornets

19 votes

183 votes | Poll has closed

Tweet Comment 9 comments | 0 recs |

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Comments

no easy choice

all three are very dangerous teams when reasonably healthy and motivated (which they will be)

"We few, we happy few, we band of brothers" Henry V

by Jeff Clark on Apr 14, 2009 6:46 AM PDT reply actions

Agreed

In any case, Lakers best take the competition seriously. We may want to play the Mavericks — we don’t want to be them.

Strength & Honor

by Josh Tucker on Apr 14, 2009 7:32 AM PDT up reply actions

Definitely the Mavericks

Our psychological edge over the Mavs is much greater than the other two. I don’t remember the stats, but the Mavs have only won 5 or 6 games against the Lakers since the Magic era I believe. Odom is usually able to shut down Dirk, and I love watching Mark Cuban squirm in his seat behind the bench.

by pslakerfan on Apr 14, 2009 10:18 AM PDT up reply actions

Also

It’s better if we avoid the two best point guards in the league. Dallas has a talented team but their centerpiece isn’t a franchise player. Don’t get me wrong, Dirk is a great player, but I have long held to the thought that a player who does not like to get touched should not be considered a franchise player.

But I would think that the Lakers need to tank this final game to even have a chance of drawing the Mavs or Hornets in the first round; which I am against.

by hertagnism on Apr 14, 2009 12:03 PM PDT up reply actions

the mavs

and it ain’t even close [well maybe a lil bit]. we can sweep the mavs but maybe to 5 or 6 games to beat the other 2

by Adamas on Apr 14, 2009 8:51 AM PDT reply actions

The Mavs are the weakest

and they’re the only team of the three we haven’t lost to yet. So using that simple logic, I’d definitely want to play them the most. However, we really can’t underestimate any of these opponents, because they will be very motivated to create a GS-Dallas II scenario.

by uclaisthebest123 on Apr 14, 2009 10:05 AM PDT reply actions

Jazz and Hornets are slumping and the Mavs are on fire...

I like the Mavs a little and have probably watched 15 of their games this year, and I tell ya — if you picked the Mavs over either of those other two teams, you are either very brash or are opining based on the team’s performance earlier in the year. They are VERY dangerous.

Pontiff of the Pryz for Prez Posse...

by timbo on Apr 14, 2009 11:15 AM PDT reply actions

Despite the Mavs being on fire...

I’m still convinced they match-up the worst with LA out of any team in the playoffs. JKidd is a crafty guard, but he doesn’t use speed and explosiveness which is what hurts us on dribble penetration. Dirk is a great player, but the combination of pau and lamar is a bad match up for him. Josh Howard is sort of a match up problem for us, but he’s not healthy. Don’t forget they don’t have anyone who can guard Kobe…and its playoff time. I think the only thing Dallas has going for them is that they are coached by Jim Carey, which will probably cause distractions in LA.

by Justin N. on Apr 14, 2009 1:43 PM PDT reply actions

It should be obvious that you would want to play Dallas. They are the most famous for their playoff failures (usually at the hands of my Spurs), plus, Gasol and Bynum will have their way in the post against them without a doubt.

by Linix129 on Apr 14, 2009 5:20 PM PDT reply actions