I just look at regular season records:

.793 for Lakers, which is second best in NBA. Next closest in West are San Antonio, Denver and Portland, all at .659. That's a big gap compared to Eastern Conference teams.

>You probably see a lot more western conference games than I do. From where I sit there are half a dozen teams out there who are capable of beating the Lakers. Their playoff toughness is not something you can take to the bank. (Whoops, I guess that's not such a good analogy any more).