The Kings find themselves matched up with their nemesis from the south, the two-time defending champion Lakers. Their predicament is worth a call to the doctor -- Dr. Jack Ramsay. The Hall of Fame coach offers his prescription for Sacramento on how it can finally beat L.A. in the playoffs.

	It's easier said than done, but the Kings must keep Shaquille O'Neal out of the lane.

The psychological factors
The Kings come off a surprising 4-1 series drubbing of the Mavericks -- accomplished without Peja Stojakovic for the last two games, with Doug Christie playing through pain and their big men, Chris Webber and Vlade Divac, in foul trouble in almost every game. Sacramento rode the coattails of its dynamic guard corps of Mike Bibby, Bobby Jackson and Christie and got a big lift from the tough Turk, Hedo Turkoglu. They displayed a mental toughness and resilience against the Mavs that had not surfaced before. They made big defensive stops, snatched vital rebounds, hit big 3-pointers and drove for layups against a porous, confused Dallas defense. The Kings are riding the crest of an emotional high right now. They must retain that level of confidence against the Lakers -- a team that beat them three out of four in the regular season.

Prescription: Offense
The Kings are at their best when they play a fast-paced, up-tempo game. To do that, they at least must hold their own in rebounding like they did in the regular season against the Lakers (Kings had a slight edge -- 45.3 to 44.9 per game). That will help them force the pace of the game by pushing the ball up court off defensive rebounds, steals and even Lakers field goals. The Lakers prefer a slower pace, have excellent transition defense and will make every effort to deny quick Sacramento breaks to the hoop.

In half-court offense, Sacramento needs to utilize the high-pick-and-roll plays that were so effective against Dallas -- using the player Shaquille O'Neal defends as the screener. That tactic takes Shaq out of the basket area and opens the lane for penetrators like Bibby, Jackson and Christie. If the defense sags to protect against penetration, the Kings' 3-point shooters will get some good looks from beyond the arc. Bibby and Jackson are as good as you'll find at creating scoring opportunities from this alignment. It will also give Divac open jumpers or drives to the hoop.

I liked the way Webber went to the basket against the Mavs. He's an extremely versatile player who can hit the jumper facing the hoop, has an inside jump hook to augment his drive and is quick to the ball in getting putback scores. The Kings need all of it from C-Webb.

While it appears that Divac is no match for O'Neal, Vlade is very clever at the low post, has a face-up jumper and has a one-dribble drive to the hoop from 15 feet out. Coach Rick Adelman will try to put Divac in scoring positions designed to get the Diesel off track and into foul trouble.

Prescription: Defense
The hopes of beating the Lakers for any team start with limiting the point totals of Kobe Bryant and Shaq without giving up great shots to their capable teammates. It turns out to be a tough job. Both stars are excellent passers and are willing to give the ball to the open man. The Lakers' play patterns have built-in good spacing, so if the opposition double-teams or sags too much, perimeter shooters Derek Fisher, Robert Horry, Rick Fox, Devean George and Bryant knock down the open looks.

Keeping Shaq out of the paint is essential. That means running the floor hard with him in transition so that he doesn't get quick position in the lane. That's a matter of concentration and dedication to the cause of winning. Divac, Scot Pollard and Webber will have that responsibility. Once in half-court defense, the Kings need to play Shaq front and back simultaneously before he gets the ball -- permissible under the new rules. From there, players need quick rotation to cover the open shooter -- less of a risk factor than having Shaq get the ball at the low post.

No player is able to stop Bryant. Play him close and he drives past you. Play off him and he drills the jumper. Close off the lane on his drive and he passes off for easy scores. Christie is the most logical matchup, and he will play him tough and try to keep Kobe out of the paint. I recommend that Christie plays Kobe as tight as he can and make him put the ball on the floor and the Kings send a second defender to cut off his progress -- then cover the other shooters as well as you can. The others are not going to beat you. Kobe and Shaq can.

This should be a great series. The Kings were swept by L.A. in last year's playoffs. They're a better team this time around, feel good about themselves and are ready to give it their best shot.

I pick the Lakers in six ... but I also give the Kings a chance for an upset.