So now that you have a little history behind why it might be so hard for me to predict the Knicks to win this year's playoffs, you may wonder why anyone other than the Lakers or Blazers this year should have a chance. After all, haven't most of the pundits already declared the Western Conference Finals to be for all intents and purposes the real NBA Finals? Just five days ago, it seemed as though Chicago Bulls West, I mean ... the L.A. Lakers, were primed to bring back a championship to the City of Angels twelve years since Magic and Kareem last won one.

After importing the Zenmaster and his coaching staff from the Bulls as well as Ron Harper and the always humorous John Salley, the Lakers dominated the National Basketball Association this year. Even with Kobe Bryant injured for the first 15 games of the season, an inspired and soon-to-be MVP Shaquille O'Neil finally lived up to his vast potential and carried his team to a league-best 67 wins. Although they drew a dangerous Sacramento King squad in the first round of the playoffs, there was little doubt in most critics' minds that the Lakers would sweep through Jason Williams and Chris Webber on their way to an inevitable Western Conference showdown with the Portland Blazers. After all, hadn't Phil Jackson led his team to a 24-1 record in his last eight first-round series as coach?

Well, it is probably more appropriate to say that it was actually Jordan that led and coached the Bulls, but the fact remained that Jackson was a clutch playoff coach. There was no way that the Zenmaster would let Shaq and his teammates slip and face possible elimination so early.

Yet a funny thing has happened since last Sunday when the Lakers held a commanding 2-0 lead in their best-of-five series with the Kings. With a raucous Arco Arena crowd galvanizing Sacramento' s players, the Lakers lost two consecutive games for the first time since the beginning of February. What once was perceived to be an unbeatable team is now reduced to a squad that is 48 minutes away from one of the most humiliating and embarrassing playoff exits in recent memory.

The Knicks on the other hand swept away Vince Carter and his Toronto Raptors on their way to a fourth consecutive playoff series meeting with the Miami Heat. Latrell Sprewell, the "American Dream," dominated the next Michael Jordan both on the offensive and defensive ends, hitting clutch shots at the end of Games 1 and 2 while Carter instead preferred to pass the rock to teammates like Dee Brown at crucial moments. Assuming the Knicks maintain their playoff advantage over the Heat, there is little doubt that they can put away either the old Pacers or the inexperienced Sixers.

The Lakers will probably win the fifth game against the Kings tomorrow, but a potential match-up with the Blazers in the conference finals seems as though it will be a lot more competitive than was thought entering the playoffs. Yet the Blazers have still not found a trustworthy go-to-guy in the clutch despite their wide range of talent. Rasheed Wallace might be their answer, but his emotions usually hinder rather than stimulate his game in the fourth quarter.

So in all likelihood, we will have a Lakers-Knicks final. Although one might question if the Knicks are consistent enough to play with L.A. in a seven-game series, they have one advantage that most teams other than Portland do not possess, which is the fact that they can guard the Big Three on the Lakers. Sprewell can defend Kobe just as well as he did Air Canada and Larry Johnson can more than keep up with Glen Rice and will even be able to exploit his size advantage on offense. Even though the Big Fella, Patrick Ewing, is as immobile as he has ever been, a double-team on Shaq using defensive SWAT-team-specialist Marcus Camby will neutralize O'Neil as much as any team in the league can hope for.