On the one hand, you have the Lakers. They have the "program building" coach in Phil Jackson. They have the top recruit in Kobe Bryant. They have a load of athletic and skilled big men (Gasol, Bynum, Odom). Even their "small" forward (Ron Artest) is 6'7, 260, strong enough to bang down low, and quick enough to guard on the perimeter. The Lakers even have covered the category of "insanely talented player who never seems to put it all together" in Shannon Brown.
Then there are the Hornets. They are undersized at nearly every position, from Chris Paul on up. They therefore have to rely on "quickness" and "smarts." When they are able to get in the lane, they still have long arms to shoot over and are made to shoot running rainbow teardrops. They have the singular star (Chris Paul) who wasn't recruited by teams from the power conference because they thought he was too short. They have the defensive "stopper" with a putrid offensive game (Trevor Ariza). Their power forward (Carl Landry) is 6'9, 248; the opposing team's big men shoot over him as though he's not there and grab rebounds even when he has boxed them out. They have one decent big man (Emeka Okafor) who is constantly in foul trouble as he tries to hang with the other front line. Their other bigs either move about as well as a statue (Aaron Gray) or are a never-going-to-come-to-fruition project with absolutely no game (D.J. Mbenga).
You just don't often see NBA teams so physically overmatched. Compare to San Antonio-Memphis. While the Spurs are definitely the deserved favorites, it's because they are simply a better basketball team. The Grizzlies are actually the bigger team and the ones who can dominate in the paint. Meanwhile, in the Hornets--Lakers series, you watch Willie Green trying in vain to battle in the post with Ron Artest, giving up seventy pounds of muscle, and predictably getting thrown around as though he's a little kid. And you can almost see the realization dawning on Andrew Bynum that he can get any shot he wants around the basket.
The Hornets are the fun team to root for in this matchup. Unless someone has a rooting interest in the big-time program (Lakers), everyone wants the overmatched and outsized mid-major to win. With New Orleans being my adopted hometown, I have even more reason to hope for a Hornets victory. But whereas a mid-major can advance in a tournament where the winner of a single game moves on, it's much more difficult to beat the big boys four separate times in a grueling series.
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