Fan Opinion: Will Los Angeles Lakers Mike Brown Get Blown Out of Playoffs? - Yahoo! Sports

The Los Angeles Lakers and first-year head coach Mike Brown have had their hands full with Greg Popovich and the San Antonio Spurs. Many observers say Popovich out coached Brown in the last two games the teams have played.

It is hard to argue the fact that the Spurs have run the Lakers ragged in the last two games and they mitigated the effectiveness of Andrew Bynum. Kobe Bryant returned in the latest debacle against the Spurs but without an effective Bynum, the Lakers didn't stand a chance.

Bynum scored 17 and 21 points in the last two games but he was not the dominant player that kept the Spurs in check. Popovich's strategy against the Lakers in the last two games was to use his depth and to keep the Lakers off balance.

Brown versus Popovich will be an obvious mismatch if these two teams bang heads in the NBA playoffs. Popovich has done more with less throughout his career and Brown has coached the greatest players in the game. Popovich has learned to coach a game while Brown has managed games.

The difference between the two head coaches became glaringly evident over the last two games. Brown had no answers for Popovich's simple strategy but there were other problems for the Lakers exposed. Lack of depth will catch up with this Lakers team as the playoffs wear them down.

Kobe Bryant may be rested but Bynum and Pau Gasol are the two players who tend to take most of the wear and tear over the course of a season. Bynum has been going full-throttle and Gasol has logged plenty of minutes in this strike-shortened season.

The two X-factors for this Lakers post season will be Metta World Peace and Ramon Sessions. The Sessions trade will pay dividends once the season goes into the playoffs but Metta World Peace is the key player.

If World Peace can play at the high level of the last two weeks, the Lakers will make a deep run. Can the Lakers do it without World Peace? They can go only as far as their two big men, Bynum and Gasol can carry them. Kobe can only do so much but the Lakers will have to play lights-out to overcome Mike Brown's inefficiency as a head coach.

*Todd Jacobs is a native Southern Californian who has followed the Los Angeles Lakers since the '70s.

Sources:

ESPN Clubhouse: Los Angeles Lakers and San Antonio Spurs stats and game recaps.