Will the Lakers Bring Home Championship #4

Since the Lakers have the historic advantage of winning off home-court, we should expect the three-time defending champions to win at the Staples Center. Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O'Neal, Coach Phil Jackson and their supporting cast have started their quest for championship No.4 in Minneapolis, the city where the Lakers originally called home until 1960. As for Coach Phil Jackson, this will be title number 10 , making him one of the only coaches in the history of basketball to win as many championships.

The Lakers can prove themselves worthy as reigning champions, despite what they've shown over the past regular season. Sure, the Lakers are one of the greatest teams in NBA history, but are they amongst the greatest of the great? The Celtics and the Bulls proved that they were the greatest in their time, but what could really put the Lakers into that realm would be the fourth straight title.

The Lakers' biggest rival in the West is the Sacramento Kings. Last year, they took the championship game to overtime in Game 7 of the Western Conference finals but the Kings still feel That they were cheated in Game 6, when the Lakers went to foul line 27 times in the fourth quarter alone. If the Kings can beat the Utah Jazz in the first round and the Portland Trail Blazers or Dallas Mavericks in the second round, its very possible that the Kings can have their chance at redemption against the team that eliminated them from the postseason three straight years.

This is the first year that the NBA will play a best -of- seven format in the first round, replacing the old best-of-five that had been used since 1984. The additional two games was suppose to disregard any downtime that existed in the past two seasons when many teams would have three to four days off between first-round games. There will be no more than a two-day break for any of the teams in the East, although that may not be the case in the West.

Will the Lakers win without home-court advantage in this postseason? There's still a long way to go, but let's just hope that they will bring the 4th consecutive championship to the City of Angels.

Younes El Aynaoui
For those who do or do not follow tennis, check out this amazing player who is from Rabat, Morocco.

Ranked 11th in the world, Younes El Aynaoui, 32, made headlines when he faced American player Andy Roddick at the 2003 Australian Open. Not only did he make the headlines at the quarterfinals despite his loss, but he played the longest 5th set tiebreak in the history of Australian tennis. The 5th set tiebreak lasted over an hour, and the entire game lasted about five and half-hours. Score was 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-4, 4-6, 19-21.

El Aynaoui turned pro in 1990 at the age of 21, and as a junior player, he copied style and play of Ivan Lendl. El Aynaoui has been a member of the Moroccan Davis Cup team since 1990 earning some of the greatest titles within the ATP tour. Though El Aynaoui has never won a Grand Slam tournament, he's considered one of the greatest over 30 tennis players currently ranked in the top 20, and the greatest tennis player that Morocco has ever had.

But what is the secret of this great athlete? Is it his energy we witnessed at the Australian Open quarterfinals? Or is it his great athleticism as a 32-year-old man playing tennis, beating pros between the ages of 20-28? Or is it the knowledge of the game he's portrayed throughout the past 13 year playing professional tennis? Younes El Anayoui secret is great health, maturity, and sportsmanship.
Let's hope this great player will win the next Grand Slam tournament before he retires.