Yesterday I wrote about the most interesting team in the East to me.  Today, I write about the most interesting teams in the West.  Everyone expects the Lakers to be there in the Western Conference FInals, but when they get there they will be playing the survivor out of the Spurs, Mavs, and Suns.  And that competition should be stronger than anything the Lakers faced on their way to a title last year.

There is a progression that most NBA players make on their path from stars to superstars.  It takes a combination of talent and experience to find your level, and you never know when it will happen.  This could be the year that Dwight Howard or Deron Williams makes the final leap, but we just don't know...they still might not be ready.  But the Spurs (Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili), Mavs (Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Kidd) and Suns (Steve Nash,) are all led by players that have reached their level. 

This is key, because these are the players that can compete on the highest level and not blink.  Last year when the Magic reached the Finals, there was no chance they could beat the Lakers because, talented or not, they just didn't have anyone that could stand in against Kobe in the pressure fryer of the Finals.  This was also true of the Nuggets last year and the Jazz the year before in the WCF...talented teams, but their stars just weren't ready to lead their teams against the very best.

This isn't true of the Spurs, Mavs or Heat.  And not only do they have leaders who won't blink, they also have a lot of talent.  If the Spurs make it that far, it will be because Duncan, Manu and Tony Parker are all healthy and playing well.  The Mavs have surrounded Dirk with multi-talented vets, and when Amare Stoudemire is healthy he pairs with Nash to form the closest thing to Karl Malone and John Stockton offensively as we've got in the league.  All three teams are formidable.

In the final was, I don't know that the Suns have enough talent/balance top-to-bottom to actually beat LA, but they have the easiest path to get there since they should have no trouble with the Brandon Roy-less Trail Blazers.  But whoever survives the Spurs/Mavs series, if they can also get past the Suns, should absolutely give the Lakers pause in the WCF. 

My key word for these playoffs is "health", which makes sense because so many of the teams with great potential IMO depend on older players.  But if everyone can stay healthy, I think this should be a very good playoffs. with one of these three old West powers giving LA a run for their money in the third round.