7. A Word About The Lakers

Yesterday, my colleague Mike Prada and I were going back-and-forth about the Lakers. He’s ranked the Cavaliers at number 1 in his excellent NBA Power Rankings for the past few weeks, and I disagree. First and foremost, because a team coached by the tandem of Mike Brown (nominal authority figure) and Lebron James (actual authority figure), should never be ranked number one at anything. But also because the Lakers have a better record at this point (nominally important), and in close games, they are nearly impossible to beat (actually important).

Have they had an easier schedule? Absolutely. Do they take games off and sometimes get blown out by inferior opponents? Yup. But this is the NBA, where “taking games off” is practically a birthright for the NBA’s truly elite teams. And nobody can turn it on like the Lakers. Because, all things considered, they’re far and away the best team. When it counts—in April, May, and June—they are the undisputed favorites to win the title.