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Kobe Bryant will be doing work in Los Angeles for at least two more seasons, as he decided not to use an opt out clause in his contract that would allow him to become a free agent.  Kobe will turn 31 next month and there is talk that he will sign an extension that will keep him in Los Angles for even more years.  The Times reported Bryant would make a guaranteed $47.8 million over the next two years with his current contract and could earn another $86 million to $91 million with the extension, depending on NBA salary-cap figures to be determined in 2011.  If he signs the extension its safe to say that Kobe will be a Laker for the rest of his career, the way it should be.  This news comes as no surprise to me.  After the Finals, when asked if he would opt out of his contract early in interviews, Kobe has said things like: ”L.A. is home”, “where else am I going to go” and “why would I want to leave?”  L.A. is now Kobe’s city after winning the Title.  It’s amazing to see the love and support that all the Laker fans are giving him and the rest of the Lakers.  If Kobe wanted to run for mayor of L.A. he would win in a landslide.  The city just belongs to him, and I know he is enjoying all the love.

Not having to worry about Kobe, the Lakers could now focus on resigning Lamar Odom and Trevor Ariza, two big contributors to the Title run.  They have both expressed their interest to stay in L.A. and defend the Title, but know that it is not up to them.  The only question is if the Lakers can afford them both with other teams bidding up their price.  That question will be answered very soon as free agency begins today.  My hope is the Lakers do resign them both so that they can repeat next year.  This team has good chemistry so they should keep it together and win more Championships.

Image Source: AP Photo

Overview:

Though the NBA and Nike might not have received the Lebron James/ Kobe Bryant match up that everyone wanted to see, but it still ends up with a great match up.  It’s going to be an unstoppable force aka Kobe vs. an immovable object aka Howard.  See the Nike commercial below:

                             
YouTube - Watch 

The Lakers got a taste of the NBA Finals last year, so they come in determined to avenge last years loss.  The Magic have only been to one other NBA Finals, so they need to show that they are not just happy to be there.  Kind of reminds me of this years Super Bowl between the traditional power Steelers and up and coming Cardinals.  I have a feeling that the results will be very similar.  A great competitive series with the more experienced team winning out in the end.

Match Ups:

Center - Andrew Bynum vs. Dwight Howard:
Bynum has been in constant foul trouble through out the playoffs, that’s going to have to change if he is going to be any factor in this match up.  He also needs to be able to guard Howard one-on-one in the post so that the Lakers don’t have to double team opening up the Magic to their deadly 3-point shooting.  That being said, I don’t really see him slowing Howard who is playing out of his mind right now.

Advantage: Dwight Howard, Magic

Power Forward - Pau Gasol vs. Rashard Lewis:
Both players have a big offensive advantage against each other.  Pau is deadly in the post and Rashard is just too small to handle the 7 footer.  On the other end, Rashard is a deadly outside shooter that Pau is going to have to chase around and guard out on the perimeter.

It’s going to be tough for both, but if there is any big man in the NBA that has skill to guard out on the perimeter it’s Gasol.   He’ll also receive help from Lamar Odom off the bench.

Advantage: Pau Gasol, Lakers

Small Forward - Trevor Ariza vs. Hedo Turkoglu:
his is going to be a great match up.  The Lakers need Ariza to keep up his good play in the playoffs and keep knocking down shots.  He’s been a bigger addition to this years playoff Lakers than Bynum has.  Guarding Hedo will be a little easier than having to guard Carmelo Anthony, but not by much.   Hedo is the Magic’s go to guy whom they like to give the ball to when they need a big play.  He’s shown that he could be a playmaker in these playoffs and if his shot is falling then he is very tough to handle.  I think Kobe is going to be the one guarding him down the stretch.

Advantage: Hedo Turkoglu, Magic

Shooting Guard - Kobe Bryant vs. Courtney Lee:
Lee has been very good for the Magic playing big minutes and making shots.  That being said, he’s still a rookie and stopping a determined Kobe is impossible.  It’s safe to say Kobe will be doing work all Finals.

Advantage: Kobe Bryant, Lakers

Point Guard - Derek Fisher vs. Rafer Alston:
Fisher has been struggling in the playoffs to find his shot.  Alston has been playing well and is making some big shots.  The Lakers just need Fisher to play good defense, make an occasional open shot and mentor the other young PGs.  The Magic need Alston to keep hitting open shots and give solid minutes.  I don’t see an advantage here.

Advantage: Even

Bench:
The Magic are not a deep team but they have been getting stellar play from Mickael Pietrus and solid play from Anthony Johnson off the bench.  They need this to continue.   Other contributors off the bench are Marcin Gortat and J.J. Redick.  The Lakers are deep but the key factor will be how Lamar Odom plays.   If he plays like he did in games 5 & 6, the Lakers will win the NBA Championship.   They also get good contributions from Luke Walton, Shannon Brown, Jordan Farmar, Sasha Vujacic.

Advantage: Lakers

Prediction:

The Lakers have been talking all year about a chance to redeem themselves. Well, they have it and I think that experience that they gain from it will prove to be to much.

Lakers in 6

Teams in the NBA’s Western Conference let out a collective moan earlier this week when small forward Ron Artest was traded to the Houston Rockets.

Artest was already in the Western Conference last season – although on the playoff irrelevant Sacramento Kings – but by pairing him with All-Stars Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady, the mighty west just got a lot more difficult.

The move wasn’t exactly a shocker. Artest had publicly admitted he regretted not opting out of the last year of his contract after watching marquee free agents like Elton Brand and Baron Davis decide their own fate. Rumor mills have been turning all summer, especially at the idea of a trade that would have sent Artest to the Lakers for Lamar Odom.

Kings GM Geoff Petrie settled on Houston though, receiving back up Bobby Jackson, first-round pick Donte Greene and next year’s first-round pick in return. Not quite the coup the Lakers pulled off in getting Pau Gasol, but a nice trade for the annual first-round-exit Rockets.

The question now is whether or not T-Mac and company can finally abandon their perennial above average status and finally join the Lakers, Spurs and recent juggernaut Hornets in the battle atop the west. The answer is … well there isn’t exactly one.

McGrady has never been able to claw his way out of the first round, and both he and Ming have a reputation of being soft. Artest will bring with him a tenacious attitude that should shore up any questions of the Rockets toughness.

Artest is also known as a defensive stopper, which coincidentally, is the one thing that the Rockets can say they are already pretty good at. They ranked second in the NBA last year on defense and also have Shane Battier on their roster – who isn’t exactly a slouch on the perimeter.

The biggest perceived challenge is Artest’s large personality and sometimes volatile emotions. We all remember the brawl at the Palace, but Artest has played for Rockets Head Coach Rick Adelman before and put up some of his best numbers in his career under Adelman’s guidance.

Regardless of how it turns out, you can’t fault the Rockets for trying. They weren’t going to win a title with the roster they had last year, and while I still don’t put them above the Lakers, Spurs, and Hornets, at least they’re taking a risk and shaking things up.

Now, for the Rockets sake, let’s hope Artest doesn’t decide to shake things up again.

While this NBA off-season has lacked household names like Kobe Bryant and LeBron James, it has more than made up for its shortage of star power with exciting free agent dramatics.

Baron Davis kicked things off by leaving Golden State to play with his buddy Elton Brand in Los Angeles. Unfortunately for Davis, Brand decided to head to the Eastern Conference and pursue his title dreams with the Philadelphia 76ers.

This left the Clippers with quite a bitter taste in their mouth, but also a lot of cap room. They decided to use part of that cap room Wednesday by trading for veteran big man Marcus Camby. So just how much is the reigning NBA shot block king worth?

As it turns out, he’s not worth a whole lot. Denver traded the defensive guru for what basically amounts to a box of Cracker Jacks. For the rights of Camby’s services, the Clippers only had to give the Nuggets the option of switching second round draft picks in 2010. Go ahead and let that sink in for a moment.

The Nuggets were the eighth seed in the Western Conference last season and atrocious on defense, so it doesn’t make a lot of sense to get rid of their best defensive player. It does provide them with some much needed cap relief, but when that comes at the expense of a playoff berth, I’m not sure it’s worth it.

Although the Camby deal is hard to stomach, it’s not even the worst trade involving a Los Angeles team in recent history. Here are three recent trades that made the Camby-for-a-swap-of-draft-picks look like a genius move by the Nuggets.

3) The Lakers trading Shaquille O’Neal to the Heat for Brian Grant, Lamar Odom and Caron Butler. Although the Lakers decision makers wouldn’t say it, this trade was more about Kobe and Shaq feuding than anything else. The Lakers are now back in title contention, but Miami won an NBA championship while Kobe and company watched from the comfort of their own homes.

2) The Memphis Grizzlies trading Pau Gasol for Kwame Brown, Javaris Crittenton and two first-round draft picks. The Lakers received an all-star caliber big man without giving up any of their top-10 players, and the Grizzlies, well, the Grizzlies got nothing. Brown never lived up to potential and Crittenton is destined to be one of the most dynamic players in the Spanish league. The Lakers, on the other hand, are coming off of a trip to the NBA finals and look to make their way there a few more times in the coming years.

1) The biggest coup in LA history has to be the Hornets giving up Kobe Bryant in exchange for Vlade Divac. Divac was a popular player and solid big man, but Bryant has turned into one of the best players in the history of basketball. Divac will be remembered for teaching American basketball players how to flop while Bryant will be remembered for bringing three (and counting) championships to LA.

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