Last Season: The Lakers were the deepest and most talented team in the NBA and lived up to the expectations and won it all. They beat the Orlando Magic in five games, giving Kobe Bryant his first ring without Shaq.

Acquisitions: F Ron Artest

Departures: F Trevor Ariza

Starting Five: F Ron Artest, F Pau Gasol, C Andrew Bynum, G Derek Fisher, G Kobe Bryant

Bench Mob: Lamar Odom, Jordan Farmar, Shannon Brown, Luke Walton, Sasha Vujacic

Most Interesting Man in the World: Ron Artest – Where do we even begin? Oh, how about the fact that his number is an homage to Michael Jackson. He chose 37 because that’s how many weeks Thriller was the number one album. That’s a little weird but not that crazy. He was recently interviewed by Sports Illustrated and hired a model to join him for the photoshoot. Definitely a little odd but we’re all just jealous. Alright, how about this: After the Lakers lost to the Celtics in the Finals two years ago, Artest entered the Lakers locker room, went into the shower and told Kobe Bryant he wanted to help him win a championship. Now that’s pretty crazy.

Over the Hill: Lamar Odom – This team is stacked and it’s tough to choose a player that’s over the hill. Many might think Derek Fisher at 35 should soon be coming off the bench. While Fisher isn’t extremely quick he’s still a good defender (unless it’s on Rockets’ Aaron Brooks) and makes good decisions. Odom provided a great spark coming off the bench last year but I’m worried about his health. His back began acting up last season and back problems have a way of continuing to surface.

Ready to Break Out: Jordan Farmar – I’m not sure if he’s ready to break out but he’s one of the only ones who will have the opportunity. Farmar shows flashes of being able to be a starting point guard in the league but also went through stretches where he’d go ice cold. If Farmar can improve his shooting percentages he will see more playing time and could contend for the starting spot.

Outlook: The Lakers are the clear-cut favorite to win the West and a slight favorite (over the Cavs) to win it all. They kept their team intact except for substituting one defensive-minded forward, Ariza, for another, Artest. Artest won’t be a problem in the locker room like some think. Sure, he’s crazy but no one has accused him of being a bad teammate. He should fit in quite well and allow Kobe to roam around on defense and save his energy for the offensive end.

The big question, as it has been for the past couple seasons, is can Andrew Bynum take the next step? In their first exhibition game against the Warriors, Bynum did step up with 24 points hitting eight of 13 shots. After the game Jackson confirmed Bynum would start for the Lakers. But even if he falters and can't produce regular outings like that, the Lakers showed they could win without much from the big man last season and there’s no reason to think they can’t do it again.

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