The Case For The Los Angeles Lakers
In 2011, the Los Angeles Lakers were aiming for a third straight NBA championship. It would’ve been the franchises 17th title and tied the Boston Celtics. The Lakers still had a stellar roster at this point. Led by a trio of Bryant, Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol, this team was able to finish the regular season with a record of 57-25, one game behind the Miami Heat. Their regular season was highlighted by winning 17 out of their first 18 games after the All-Star break. Their only loss during that period came at the hands of the Heat. After the streak they stumbled into playoffs by losing five of their last seven games.
In a seven-game series against the Heat, the Lakers would have had to rely on their defense and rebounding. That season, LA was ranked third in total rebounds per game and fifth in offensive rebounds per game—thanks largely in part to their seven-foot trio of Gasol, Bynum, and 2011 Sixth Man of the Year Lamar Odom. Their defense was also excellent, only giving up 95.4 points per game. Although Miami was a bit younger and faster, the Lakers would’ve most likely been able to frustrate them defensively and severely out-rebound them as that was a key weakness for the Heat.
A few more tipping points for LA would’ve been their playoff experience, their offensive structure, and the fact that they had Phil Jackson on the sidelines. By 2011, head coach Phil Jackson had been the coach of this core for approximately 5 years. This group of guys had been through it all by that point. There wouldn’t have been anything the Heat could throw at them that they hadn’t seen before. And no disrespect to Erik Spoelstra, but he didn’t have quite the coaching acumen at that point in comparison to Phil Jackson.
Miami’s offense struggled in its first year. There were questions about who gets the ball and who should be the leader offensively. Chris Bosh didn’t know whether to play post or perimeter and James and Wade couldn’t figure out who should take over in the fourth quarter. The Lakers would’ve likely been able to exploit the Heat’s indecisiveness and use it to their advantage.
The Verdict?
Assuming all involved are healthy, I’d give this series to the Lakers. I believe the Lakers would’ve had too much experience and structure to not beat Miami. The best chance for Miami was the fact that in real life, the Lakers struggled through the 2011 playoffs. Kobe wasn’t 100 percent healthy and the rest of the team failed to pick up the slack. Not to mention the fact that the demise of Bynum was looming.
But for the purposes of this demonstration, the Lakers would most likely have beaten the Heat and won their 17th NBA championship. It wouldn’t have been easy, but LA would have better team defense, a staunch rebounding edge, and the championship pedigree needed to win a series like this. In this hypothetical, the Lakers win 4-2 in the Finals. Too bad it’s only a dream.