Charles Barkley picks Los Angeles Lakers over Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference – NBA News
With the addition of Dwight Howard to the Los Angeles Lakers through a blockbuster four team trade last week, the Lakers have become the talk of the NBA and the team to beat next season. They are already being tipped as the team
to take the NBA crown come June 2013, and many are calling it a wrap. After all, when you put Steve Nash, Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard in one team, and also have Pau Gasol in the starting five, very few teams are going to win from you.
However, there are still people in the NBA who believe the Oklahoma City Thunder to be a better team than the Lakers, saying that the Thunder are more balanced and organic, while the Lakers will have compatibility issues come next
season. Also, Oklahoma are young and athletic, and improving every season which puts the Lakers at a mismatch against them. The debate has grabbed the attention of many, with Hall of Famer Charles Barkley being the most recent person to give his opinion on
the issue. And Barkley is going with the Lakers.
"The Lakers. (Host: Over Oklahoma City?) Yeah. I'm not a big Oklahoma City fan because I don't think they get any easy baskets. Like last year I didn't think they could win and the reason I picked Miami to win the championship,
the only way you're going to beat Miami is beat them up inside,” said Barkley while talking to Sports Radio Interviews.
The Lakers have put a dominant back court duo into place with Gasol and Howard, and their defence is being anticipated to be the best in the NBA next season. Then the Lakers have Steve Nash joining next season, who is probably
the best ball handler, passer and play maker of the past decade.
And when you have Kobe Bryant to handle most of the scoring, you know it is a winning combination. The Lakers will need to show a great deal of maturity to play together next season without letting their egos getting the better
of them. But the ultimate test for this team will be how they handle the media attention and the pressure to win a championship in their first outing. They are the new Miami Heat and Mike Brown is the new Erik Spoelstra.
The game is on for the Lakers now.
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