The Los Angeles Lakers begin defense of their NBA championship Tuesday when they play host to their building mates, the Los Angeles Clippers, at Staples Center.
When we last saw the Lakers, Pau Gasol used his vaunted offensive skills to score at will on the low blocks against Orlando, and was quite the "Robin" to Kobe Bryant's "Batman" as the Lakers summarily dismissed the overmatched Magic in just five games for the franchise's 15th NBA title.
With Gasol and Bryant leading the way, the Lakers figured to remain a significant contender for the foreseeable future but did had a few decisions to make in the offseason. Two key contributors, forwards Lamar Odom and Trevor Ariza, were free agents.
Odom, especially, could have gotten a nice payday elsewhere but he remained in Hollywood and married reality television star Khloe Kardashian. Ariza, meanwhile, bolted for Houston but the Lakers managed to replace him with a more talented player in former Rocket Ron Artest, who signed a five-year, $33 million dollar deal.
Whether the volatile Artest is able to accept a lesser offensive role and fit in as well as Ariza will likely go a long way in determining the Lakers collective fate.
The Lakers were chosen by a majority of the league's 30 general managers in their annual survey to repeat as NBA champs, largely due to head coach Phil Jackson and Bryant.
The Lakers earned 60.7 percent in the "Who will win the 2010 title" voting, while the Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers tied for the next highest amount at 17.9 percent.
"We certainly have the talent to win another one," Bryant said. "If we don't, it's because of our lack of focus or an injury here or there."
As for tonight's game Gasol is listed as doubtful with a strained right hamstring while center Andrew Bynum is questionable with a strained right rotator cuff.
The Clippers, meanwhile, are coming off a miserable 19-win season. A traditional NBA doormat, the Clips finally found some luck in mid-May, landing the No. 1 overall selection in the NBA Draft during the lottery.
While the team already possessed a plethora of talented frontcourt people like Marcus Camby, Chris Kaman and DeAndre Jordan, the team made room for the consensus No. 1 overall pick, Oklahoma power forward Blake Griffin.
Coach Mike Dunleavy also added former Hornets three-point specialist Rasual Butler, talented, but underachieving point guard Sebastian Telfair and bruising forward Craig Smith, while re-signing big man Brian Skinner, the slick shooting Steve Novak and high-scoring Ricky Davis in the offseason.
Meanwhile, the Clippers are hoping for a huge, bounce back year from veteran point guard Baron Davis. The Clips' quarterback averaged 21.8 points for Golden State in 2007-08 and fell to just 14.9 in 65 games for the Clippers last season.
Clippers fans will have to wait to see Griffin, however. The No. 1 overall pick's NBA debut has been pushed back indefinitely after the team revealed late Monday night that he has a stress fracture in his left kneecap.
Griffin broke the kneecap during the Clippers' final exhibition game against New Orleans last Friday and the injury could sideline the Oklahoma product, who averaged 13.7 points and 8.1 rebounds per game during the preseason, for up to six weeks.
The Lakers, who swept the four-game season series between the two clubs last year and have taken eight straight overall against their co-tenants, are an impressive 31-9 against the Clippers at Staples Center, which has been home to both clubs since the 1999-2000 season.
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