No "I" in Los Angeles Lakers

Many people are asking who gets the credit for the Lakers return to glory. A vote online gives you the option of voting for Phil, Kobe, Kupchack, the Grizzlies front office, or Pau Gasol. Yes, all of these options have helped contribute to the Lakers great season. Phil held the team together. Kupchack put the team together. The Grizzlies office donated Gasol who took the place of the injured Bynum. And Bryant smoothly played his best year of basketball ever and took MVP honors.

But aren't we forgetting somebody. Ummmm... like the rest of the freaking Lakers, whom without the Lakers couldn't even be called an NBA basketball team. Five players are needed to start this game. And there should probably be some sort of bench to replace the starting five. Imagine five players alone trying to play a whole 48 minutes against the Warriors? And a few extra players are certainly necessary when injuries happen.

How good are the rest of the Lakers? Good. This team is deep. From spots 3-10 they can all play ball. They are more experienced in the offense as most of the team has had a couple seasons in it and understands the complex cuts and rotation of the triangle. They are stronger with the ball, think of Fisher, Odom, Jordan Farmar or pre-injured Bynum. They rebound better, think of Odom or pre-injured Bynum. They are shooting better than last season, think of Vujacic and Radmonvic. They play better defense, think of Turiaf, Walton and pre-injured Ariza. The team also has young legs (barring Derek Fisher) which is an obvious advantage. And last and most importantly, they all believe in each other. It can be seen on the bench as the Lakers cheer on their team mates.

So without the rest of the team, this years Laker squad could never had hoped that they would make as much noise as they have. Kobe and Pau would be one hell of a two on two squad at the local gym but they couldn't do squat on their own in the NBA. It takes a team effort.