At this point, I think the only team that could beat the Lakers would be Indiana, and that would happen only if they can shoot consistently from the outside.....something San Antonio couldn't do. While many thought San Antonio would take the series, few picked San Antonio to go all the way this year before the season. We saw in this series what was missing from last year, namely David Robinson. While Robinson wasn't a tough guy, his presence made a huge difference in the middle last year, both in defense, and consistency, as well as being the leader of the Spurs in the clubhouse. The current Spurs are a young team, and if they had been able to get Jason Kidd last year, things may have been quite different. These Spurs leaders are young guys, unlike LA/SACTOWN/TWOLVES, and the loss hopefully makes them stronger. Their future looks bright if they continue to improve, and learn how to shoot under pressure. I turned off last night's game against the Lakers after Duncan got two cheap ticky tack fouls, as the handwriting was on the wall. The NBA needs the Lakers and their drama in the finals, no doubt, as ratings suck. Hats off to the Lakers and Malone & Payton if they end up finally getting a ring. That would be a nice story, superstars sacrificing a paycheck for a ring. I can't imagine Kobe or Shaq doing such a thing.
Payton didn't have mucho employment options. Management around the league is distrustfull of his attitude. There wasn't any team going to take the risk of owing that a**hole 20 million over the next few years.