NBA Analysis: The Wild, Wild West

The West was much better than the East going into the season, and with many of the top teams making moves to get even better, it's almost impossible to tell who will come out of the conference. With every game like a playoff game, each team knows that a single win could guarantee you a spot, while a single loss could plummet you out of contention. Note: The order in which I list these teams is not representative of how I rank them in the conference. That would spoil the fun of you reading this. Instead, I'll make my prediction for Western Conference champion at the end of the article. Without further adue, let's get started:   L.A. Lakers (43-18): The Laker have been stellar this year, with the emergence of the young Andrew Bynum helping to take some pressure off of Kobe Bryant's shoulders. But one other player he has affected - possibly more than Kobe - is Lamar Odom. Odom is a terrific athlete, easily capable of playing both forward positions. But the Lakers have had to ... [link]