Bynum Rising to the Elite

A healthy Bynum could almost assure a
Laker three-peat.

The Los Angeles Lakers have gone an NBA best 10-1 since the All-Star break and Andrew Bynum has been right in the center of it all.

Los Angeles went into the break losing three straight at the hands of two sub .500 teams and the Orlando Magic. A lot has changed since then with the 'Lake Show' cruising in the second half.

And Bynum rising to be one of the most elite centers in the NBA.

There is no argument that Orlando's Dwight Howard is the best at his position in the NBA, but Bynum creeped a little closer to his status Monday night.

Bynum and the Lakers outplayed the Magic, coming away with a 97-84 victory on their home floor. In 28 minutes, Bynum outplayed Howard grabbing 18 rebounds while Howard was able to track down 15 in almost 43 minutes of play. The former first-round pick also blocked four shots, three of them coming against Howard. What a difference a month makes for Bynum and the two-time defending NBA champions.

Bynum has been the difference for the Lakers since the break with his defense and enegry on both sides on the floor. In the eleven games since the break, Bynum has averaged 13 boards and brought his season average up 1.9 blocks per contest.

Still only 23, Bynum seems to be reaching his full potential that the Lakers thought he would when they drafted him with the 10th overall pick in 2005. Despite Bynum says his knee is not fully healthy from his offseason surgery, he sure is playing like it. With Bynum playing at an elite level, the Lakers look even better than their previous title runs each of the last two years.

The size and length the Lakers now bring to the table increase their chances even more to three-peat. Bynum showed his heart last June, playing the entire postseason on a bad knee and now seems to have taken his game to the next level.

If Bynum plays this way rest of the way and can stay healthy, you can almost bet on Los Angeles this postseason.