The Credits: "Last Night at the Alamo"

The Spurs showed me nothing last night and gave me no reason for concern. When this Laker team is healthy and playing it’s best, we are 40 points better then any other team in the West.

The Lakers

On the plus side, a frontline combination of Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom and Bosh would be incredibly quick and versatile. They’re all slashers, runners, jump-shooters, explosive scorers, and long-armed rebounders and defenders, who can also take an occasional turn in the pivot. The triangle offense would be more crisp, quicker to unfold, and therefore immensely more difficult to adequately defend.

Also, Bosh is a more reliable and mobile scorer than Bynum and would make doubling Kobe even more risky than it is now.

Thus far in his tenure in L.A., Bynum has been inconsistent, tending to play well against weak teams and poorly against strong teams. He still routinely forces his offense, and he gets confused when required to make quick decisions on defense. Moreover, unless either Gasol or Odom is down with injuries, Bynum is bench-bound in end-game situations — a status that causes the young man to pout and mumble.

Yes, he’s still only 22, but there are distressing signs that Bynum will never fully mature and become the interior force that his potential suggests.

And if 6-6, 242-pound Chuck Hayes can play powerhouse defense for 20 minutes per game at the center slot, there’s every expectation that 6-7, 246-pound Ron Artest could do the same — and do it even better.

If the Lakers could be guaranteed that Bosh would sign a long-term contract, the defending champs should jump at the opportunity. Both in the short- and long-term view, the Lakers would be better with Bosh than with Bynum.

Link.