It still hurts....Lakers vs. Raps

Coming off another impressive win and a ridiculous performance by Bosh, you would think Coach of the Month, Sam Mitchell would be able to get a good night's sleep. But his nightmare kept him up in a cold sweat all night. What would cause such an unpleasant evening?.....81 POINTS!

Two words Mitchy: Double Team

Kobe Bryant visits the ACC tonight with his own dreams of trying to shake off one of his worst shooting games of the year. Last night Kobe shot 5 of 13 for 18 pts while also committing a dismal 8 of his team's 18 turnovers in a loss to the Pistons. Expecting the Raptors to hold #24 to the same numbers is highly unlikely. Kobe is, as always, an MVP candidate and still the best go-to guy in the league. You can be sure he will want to bounce back from yesterday's performance and look to put up big numbers; and who better to do that against than the team he disgraced a year ago.

The Raptors, however, have an MVP candidate in the making of their own. Chris Bosh has established himself as one of the most dominate players in the NBA. While being a force around the basket, Bosh has made it known to all players that he can now step back and hit the outside jumper. So how do you defend him? Well, like all great players, you just kind of hope he has off nights.

As the Raptors continue to make noise around the league and make a name for themselves in the Eastern Conference, these next two games will truly be a test of how far they have come and where they can go. The Lakers( 30-20 ) are a well coached team that can beat anyone on any given night. Only the Raptors best efforts will give them a chance against a team that they are 4-17 lifetime, with their last win coming nearly two years ago.

This will likely be a close game with a sell-out crowd and lots of highlights for fans to be entertained by. And although I love the Raps, I see Kobe being a little too much, again.
Either way, tonight will not only be a great test for Toronto, but a chance at redemption for the embarrassment the team put its fans through last year. Look for Bosh to try and upstage one of the all-time greatest players and make a case for himself as the league's MVP.