All the talk and hype about a Lebron-Kobe showdown is OVER and my darkhorse pick to get to the Finals detroyed Lebron’s Cavs this morning in very convincing fashion. Superman scored 40 points and went 12-16 from the line to trounce the Cavs and Lebron had his worst game this post-season. The “Magic upset” paved way to a very intriguing Finals match-up against the highly-touted Lakers in Staples next Thursday.

The Cavs were so favored in the Conference Finals series, they actually had majority of the NBA analysts saying they’d sweep the Magic. Give me a break. If you’re a Magic fan like I am, you know that it would be impossible for them to have done so. The world now knows how good this Magic team is and how much better this match-up is between them and the Lakers is compared to the Cavs.

(2) Los Angeles Lakers vs (4) Orlando Magic

Let’s break this Final series down. In the regular season, the Magic beat the Lakers 2-0, 1 at home and 1 on the road. Does that record matter in the Finals? Unlike the Cavs series where the Magic had a better head-to-head record that also mattered this post-season, this one against the Lakers does not. In both games, Jameer Nelson scored a total of 55 points and burned the Lakers. He’s gone now and Rafer Alston isn’t going to be even close. Next, Trevor Ariza was an afterthought back then but now he’s a certified starter and is the X-factor for the Lakers winning the series altogether.

And with those two changes, it made the regular season record irrelevant. The Lakers became a much better team. They got stronger in defense with Ariza starting and he has also shown a ton of potential on the offensive end. Goodbye Vladimir Radmanovic. The Magic, on the other hand, lost a lot of scoring in the point but had Courtney Lee grow up right before our eyes and more importantly have Pietrus emerge as their X-factor in both ends also. So who DOES have the better team? Let’s break it down.

Next: Lakers vs Magic Player Match-ups