Last year, the Lakers had to deal with the fact of not having Andrew Bynum available due to injuries, and so the Celtics certainly had it easier at the NBA finals, but Doc Rivers, Boston’s coach knows that Los Angeles is a very different team now that Bynum is healthy and ready to play. And so he knows he’s the man that can change everything in comparison with the Lakers from last NBA season.
Bynum is a young player who is the perfect replacement for Shaq due to his physical condition, and critics are also saying that he will be the next Kobe Bryant in Los Angeles when Bryant is ready to leave the team. Andrew Bynum is basically the perfect combination for a basketball player: one that can defend and score at the same time.
The NBA finals from last year wouldn’t have been the same if Bynum would have played. The Lakers from last season looked more like an offensive team than one that is balanced in offense and defense, this year, they are such team, and if both Lakers and Celtics are faced each other at the NBA finals again, then I think the story can be very different.
Of course, we all know that the Lakers are a pain in the head even without Andrew Bynum, but with a healthy Bynum on the team, they know that they are said to be the most dominant team in the league, so such dominance can be also said to be dependant on the good health of the 21 year-old player.
With some games between the two franchises at the regular season, we’ll be able to see what is the current condition of the rivalry, and we’ll also see if the Celtics still have an edge (in what dominance concerns) over the Lakers now that Bynum is part of the team.
