It’s not that the Jazz can’t win games against the Lakers.

Okay, who’re we kidding; it’s exactly that.  The Lakers outclass the Jazz in almost ev-er-y sin-gle way, and though Utah may have been considered a “tough out” as recently as a month ago, things change.  And boy did they.

This one’s going to be a bloodbath.

I don’t think there’s any dispute that L.A. is the better team here.  Even the Jazziest of Jazzers would have to concede that point.  The only point of contention would be just how long it would take for the Lakers to win, and in just how dominant of a fashion they do so.  I’m here to clear any doubt.  The Lakers will be flossing their teeth with what remains of the Jazz by the time this series is through.  There will be no poetry.  There will be no beauty.  Just domination by the hands of a triangle, and a lifeless corpse paralyzed by the bite of a mamba.

It’s tragic for Deron Williams, who I fully expect to be spectacular.  But it’s a team sport, they say, and however he might flex his point guard muscles against the likes of Derek Fisher, Shannon Brown, and Trevor Ariza, Carlos Boozer, Memo Okur, and the rest of the Utah cast simply don’t have the talent level, the defensive dedication, or the level of execution to take down a juggernaut like the Lakers.

Let’s get one thing straight: it takes a perfect storm to beat the Lakers this year.  Your team needs to be playing some damn good basketball, the Lakers need to fall off a bit, and the match-ups need to be favorable.  Utah can count just one match-up in their favor, and doesn’t have any kind of momentum going into the playoffs after stumbling down to the 8th seed.  At full strength, with a world of confidence, we might talk about this as if it were a series.  But considering just how bad the Jazz have been (explain away their shortcomings at your own peril) to finish the season, I can’t grant them much of a chance, if any.  You need a Jazz explosion and a Lakers implosion to generate some genuine competition here, and I just don’t see it.

You see that Hardwood Paroxysm banner at the top, and you might assume that this is just another post to get Jazz fans’ blood pumping.  That I’m trying to get your goat, and all that.  Well, also consider this blog’s extensive history of Laker-hate, and what it must mean if I’m willing to sing their praises for a paragraph or two.  Bynum isn’t as destined for greatness as people think, but that doesn’t make the Lakers anything less than a juggernaut.  They have Kobe.  They have Pau.  They have PJax.  And now they have Bynum.  Damn right, they’re better than yours.

Lakers in 5.

The Lakers and the Jazz tip off on Sunday at 3:00 EST on ABC.