NBA Western Conference Finals Preview

Also see: NBA Eastern Conference Finals Preview

I have this theory that anything on TV becomes 25-50% more watchable if it is available in HD. Because of HD, I feel like Sigourney Weaver and I are somewhat friends because I've spent so much time listening to her hypnotically monotone narration of the "Planet Earth" series.

Because of HD, I'm fairly certain that I could be a homicide detective after watching roughly 100 episodes of "The First 48" on A&E, assuming I can get my mustache to grow in full enough.

And because of HD, I stumbled across one of the most perplexing shows on TV right now: "Mythbusters." If you haven't seen it, it is basically three obnoxious weirdos trying to prove whether various urban legends are true or not. It is the kind of show that under no circumstances would I watch even a minute of in standard definition. But because it's in HD, I find myself actually following closely along thinking things like, "You know what, I have always wanted to know if the wind from a jet engine could blow over a taxi cab."

What exactly does this have to do with the Western Conference Finals? One, they will be in HD, so there is no reason not to watch. And secondly, I have seen the light and decided to break down the Lakers and Spurs series, "Mythbusters"-style.

Myth: The Spurs Are Boring

This might be my biggest pet peeve in basketball right now. Can someone explain how just the thought the Pistons and Spurs scoring in the 80s makes for a boring NBA finals, but when the Celtics and Cavaliers do, it it's a "slugfest?"

When did efficiency become synonymous with boring? For 10 years now, I've listened to everyone and their brother say that San Antonio is boring to watch, and I can't figure it out. Do these people even watch Spurs games?

What is boring about watching a team execute time and again on both sides of the floor in clutch situations? What is boring about watching Tony Parker run the one-man fast break to perfection? Manu Ginobili is the most creative and improvisational player in the game right now, what's boring about that?

It is their "boring" style of play that may lull the Lakers to sleep and give the Spurs the upper hand in this series. The Lakers like to shoot pretty early in the shot clock and get out and run as much as possible. If the Spurs can slow the pace of this series and minimize the amount of possessions the Lakers get per game, they have a real chance of winning.

Myth: Kobe Shoots Too Much

You'll always hear this one because no matter what he does there will always be people out there that want to bash Kobe Bryant as a person and a player. The fact is Kobe does shoot a lot, but why shouldn't he? Someone has to take the most shots on his team. As a coach, wouldn't you want that person to be the best player on the planet?

Look at it this way: Kobe averaged 20.6 field goal attempts per game. LeBron averaged 21.8. The last few years when Kobe had no help surrounding him, he shot a lot and was labeled as selfish and a ball-hog. This year LeBron has no help and he shoots a lot and no one bats an eye.

Here is another example to dispel the myth that Kobe shoots too much. This season, he led the league in field goal attempts for the third time in his career. Michael Jordan led the league nine times. Wilt Chamberlain led the league seven times. Allen Iverson led the league four times.

When each of those stars led the league in shots, he was one of the most prolific scorers in the league. Great scorers should shoot the ball.

If you want proof that the Lakers are better when Kobe shoots the ball, take Game 6 of the Utah series for example. The Lakers blew a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter because Kobe was differing to his teammates. With about six minutes left in the game and the lead diminishing, Kobe took over, scored the next 11 points, and put the Jazz away. All because he decided it was time to shoot.

Myth: Phil Jackson is Overrated

The big myth concerning Uncle Phil is that he only has all of his titles because he coached Jordan and then Shaq and Kobe.

Every title team has all-time great players on their team. That's why they win titles. There will never be a shortage of all-time greats in the league at any one time. Right now, there are no fewer than 15 future Hall of Fame players in the league. They won't all win titles.

In his coaching career, Red Auerbach coached 11 different players that made it to the hall of fame. By my count, Phil has only coached four Hall of Famers in his career: Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Shaq, and Kobe (six if you count coaching washed up Karl Malone and Gary Payton). Since they both have nine rings, using the logic that coaching great players makes you overrated, then I guess Red Auerbach is wildly overrated.

No one would ever say that about Red, so how can you say it about Phil?

Myth: The Spurs Aren't a Dynasty

Can we settle this once and for all? Winning back-to-back titles isn't what qualifies a team as a dynasty. To me, nothing says dynasty like consistently being the team to beat year in and year out. There hasn't been a single season since their title in 1999 that the Spurs haven't been a legitimate championship contender. Winning consecutive titles is impressive, but so is a decade of basketball at the highest level.

Myth: The Spurs Can't Win Back to Back Titles

Unfortunately for San Antonio, this myth turns out to be true. For whatever reason, the Spurs have not been able to seal the deal on even numbered years. It's far from a curse, more of a series of freak occurrences, but it is real. And it doesn't look like the Spurs are going to buck the trend this year.

As much as I like and respect the Spurs game, I think the Lakers are just too good. The Spurs present some match up problems for the Lakers, namely who's going to guard Duncan and Parker, but they are the same problems that Utah presented and the Lakers handled them just fine.

Offensively, the Lakers have been virtually unstoppable since Gasol arrived. The inside presence that he has compliments the perimeter game that Kobe has so well that it is nearly impossible to focus the defense on stopping one facet of the Lakers game. Add that to the fact that they always have at least three formidable three-point shooters on the floor at all times and the Lakers' offense may be the best in the league.

The chess match both in-game and between games between Pop's defense and Jackson's offense is going to be fun to watch, but in the end, the Lakers are more talented, hungrier, and peaking at just the right time.

It is no longer a myth that the Spurs will not win consecutive titles. It is a fact.

Lakers in seven.