Apr 20, 2012; San Antonio, TX, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Tim Duncan (21) reacts to a foul called on him during the first half against the Los Angeles Lakers at the AT

This past week was supposed to be the renewed rivalry of the Lakers and Spurs. Two franchises that have dominated the NBA landscape for over a decade. Two teams that have undergone complete overhauls yet still are atop the West. Storied rivals meeting three times in a two week span with playoff implications on the line.

Yet after those three games concluded about all we got were three blowouts each creating more questions than answers for where these two teams stand in the NBA landscape.

My man Quixem Ramirez over at Air Alamo penned a fantastic piece on the classic days of this once contentious rivalry. After reading his inspired writing I couldn’t help but wonder if we’ll ever see anything like those days again.

To be sure the road to the NBA Finals still runs through San Antonio and Los Angeles if you’re trying to make a trip to Titletown. But after the way these two teams performed in their three game season series you can’t help but wonder which direction this rivalry is headed.

Without a doubt the real concern, as far as this season goes, is with the Lakers. After abusing the Spurs in the first meeting it’s been all one-way traffic since.

Does this mean the Lakers are officially done competing for titles until another rebuild is completed? Are the Spurs enjoying their last moment in the sun?

Those are only a few of the questions that raced through my mind as I watched L.A. unravel last night.

Now this season is far from over. In fact the real season is about to begin. The Lakers and Spurs could meet again and perhaps the dramatics of the playoffs will produce a spark to reignite this once revered rivalry. Of course for that to happen it’s going to take a certain set of circumstances to play out. Which inevitably leads me back to my original question.

Have we seen the last of the Lakers-Spurs rivalry?

Mar 6, 2011; San Antonio, TX, USA; Los Angeles Lakers center Pau Gasol (16) and San Antonio Spurs forward Tim Duncan (21) hug before the start of the game at the AT

The more things change the more they stay the same. If all you know of the NBA is what you’re seeing right now and what you hear on a daily basis you might think the Oklahoma City Thunder and L.A. Clippers are the kings of the Western Conference. Of course all you’d have to do is survey the rafters in Staples Center and the AT&T Center to know you don’t get out of the West without going through the Lakers and Spurs first.

Every year the hoops world prepares to write off the Lakers and Spurs, all too eager to welcome the new guard. Yet every year, as the regular season comes to its conclusion, the top of the Western Conference looks pretty much the same.

Sure, Oklahoma City has certainly worked its way into the title conversation. But that’s all OKC’s chances are limited to at this point – talk. For all the love of the Durant-Westbrook show they’re still fighting off the Duncan-Parker duo for best in the West.

With the way the world has fallen in love with the Clippers you’d assume the Lakers are looking up at their Staples mates. Instead it’s the exact opposite. That other team in Los Angeles is still that other team in Los Angeles with the Clippers sitting fourth to the Lakers third in the Western playoff positioning.

Even the defending world champion Dallas Mavericks are looking up at both the Lakers and Spurs one year after walking through Los Angeles to their first title.

No matter how you look at it the right to represent the West in the NBA Finals still runs through L.A. and San Antonio. And if history is any indicator, should the Lakers and Spurs meet in the playoffs then the winner of that series will in all likelihood hang another banner. Turns out nothing much has changed in the last decade at least not in the Western Conference.