Lakers' title was more than Kobe's redemption

An intense year of NBA playoffs ended without much drama on Sunday as the Los Angeles Lakers closed out Orlando on the road in Game 5.

Go ahead and congratulate Kobe Bryant for being the catalyst in L.A.’s 10th NBA title. He averaged 32.4 points in the Finals -- to go with 7.4 assists, believe it or not -- and 30.2 points in the playoffs overall.

But it’s a mistake to say this championship is Kobe’s redemption; proof that he really can win a title without Shaquille O’Neal.

If anything, this postseason emphasized more than ever the importance of an inside game. Bryant was impressive, but there’s no chance the Lakers get to the Finals, this year or last, without Pau Gasol. Gasol averaged 18.6 points, 9.2 rebounds, 1.8 blocks and shot 60 percent from the field in the Finals, attempting less than half the number of shots as Bryant.

Combined with Lamar Odom (13.4 points, 7.8 rebounds in the Finals) and a few choice minutes from Andrew Bynum, the Lakers were as well-equipped on the inside as any NBA champion since San Antonio’s last Tim Duncan-David Robinson title in 2003.

On second thought, make that the ’99 Spurs. Robinson was washed up by ’03 and didn’t contribute much.

ANOTHER TRADE PAYS OFF
The Lakers’ championship was also an example of why the Bulls have been saving up expiring contracts and trying so hard to make one of those bargain trades.

The only valuable piece the Lakers gave up for Gasol was his younger brother Marc, who wasn’t needed. The Bulls turned down a chance to trade for Gasol in ’07 (which really did seem like a smart move at the time), but didn’t have an expiring contract to trade a year later when the price dropped.

Detroit won the ’04 title thanks to a “little in return” trade for Rasheed Wallace. Boston’s championship last season was a direct result of the Kevin Garnett deal, though that wasn’t as much of a bargain trade. Minnesota should get a future all-star out of the transaction with Al Jefferson.

The discount aisle may open again, though. The Bulls have a decent team, more than $20 million in expiring contracts, while Chris Bosh and Amare Stoudemire are about to become free agents a year from now. The Bulls probably could be one trade away from a Finals run.

PHIL FINALLY BREAKS TIE
It goes without saying that Lakers coach Phil Jackson has worked with great players. He certainly wouldn’t have taken the Sacramento Kings to the Finals this season.

But while Jackson becomes the NBA’s all-time leader with 10 titles, breaking the tie with Red Auerbach, we should appreciate once again how Jackson coaxed strong performances from his role players (Trevor Ariza, especially) and took advantage of Orlando’s failure to close out wins in Games 2 and 4.

Great players or not, Jackson is a great coach.

BULLS WORKOUTS CONTINUE
In an unrelated note, the Bulls continued predraft workouts on Monday with North Carolina guard Wayne Ellington and Wake Forest forward James Johnson visiting the Berto Center.

UNC point guard Ty Lawson and Wake Forest guard Jeff Teague are among the players expected in later this week.