Wednesday night's loss to the 76ers changes things a bit for the legacy of these Kobe-Shaq-Phil Lakers. I still think they are favored to win the NBA title, but not going undefeated in the playoffs puts off any claim this team may have had to being one of the greatest teams of all time.

As far as all-time NBA teams, I'd take the mid-'80s Boston Celtics with Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish over this year's Lakers.

Right now, the Lakers are 11-1 in the 2001 NBA playoffs. In 1999, the New York Yankees only lost one game in the postseason (the famous Roger vs. Pedro game at Fenway) on their way to a second straight World Series title.

But that team was playing in the shadow of the '98 Yankees, who won 114 in the regular season and 125 overall. Those '99 Yankees seemed less-than-dominant because they won only 98 games.

Like the '99 Yankees, the Lakers struggled going into the postseason this year. They righted the ship, but in February and March they looked like they could be also-rans. The air of invincibility wasn't there from start to finish. Especially with the Shaq-Kobe-Phil bickering over shots and offensive philosophy in the middle of the season.

So when you're ranking the greatest teams of all time, do you look at regular-season performance? Just wondering. Because the Lakers, due to their midseason swoon, didn't even have the best record in their conference.

As far as all-time NBA teams, I'd take the mid-'80s Boston Celtics with Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish over this year's Lakers. I'd also take the Lakers with Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, James Worthy, Byron Scott and Michael Cooper and the 76ers with Dr. J and Moses Malone over these 2001 Lakers. Obviously, if these current Lakers grab a few more titles, I might have to reconsider. But right now, I don't see them beating these other teams.

Remember the lineup of Magic, Kareem, James Worthy, Byron Scott and Kurt Rambis, with Michael Cooper coming off the bench? I'll take my chances with that team. And with the front line of McHale, Parish and Bird against Robert Horry, Horace Grant and Shaq. As great as Shaq is, I'll take my chances with the other three. With Dennis Johnson, one of the better defenders in NBA history, guarding Kobe. Danny Ainge was always kind of the wild card, with Bill Walton coming off the bench. And the 76ers with Moses, Doc, Bobby Jones and Andrew Toney, they'd give these Lakers all they could handle.

	Kobe Bryant spun and slashed Wednesday, but couldn't shake Eric Snow and the rest of the Sixers defense.

On the other hand, I'd take this year's Lakers over both the mid-'90s Rockets, who won back-to-back titles, and the "Bad Boy" Pistons of the late '80s.

For some perspective, I am only dealing with the last 20 years -- considering the evolution of styles and the difference between today's athletes and those from the days of black-and-white television. I really wonder if you can compare today's teams to the great Bill Russell Celtic teams of the '50s and '60s. It's still basketball, but it's a different game today.

I felt that the Lakers had to go undefeated through the playoffs to be ranked among the best ever. They still have time, obviously, to state their case in the next few years. Why? Well, they beat a suspect Portland team. They beat a Sacramento team that can't play defense. They did beat the Spurs -- who had the best record in basketball -- so that says something. Still, it looks like they're going to beat a wounded Philadelphia team for the title. Is that the Lakers' fault? No.

In the recent past, the Lakers always had the Celtics to go through or the Celtics had the 76ers to beat. And for that reason alone, any time they got to the finals, there was a formidable stumbling block that allowed you to say, "They got through those guys to get to here. Or they beat that team to win the title". You don't have that with this year's Lakers. Tiger Woods has the same problem. After a while you say, "Yeah, but who did he beat?"

This topic reminds me of some big upsets to dust off and keep as a reference point: North Carolina State over Houston in '83; Villanova over Georgetown in '85; the Dodgers over the A's with Kirk Gibson in '88; and the Cincinnati Reds (with Rob Dibble) over the A's in '90. The big favorite doesn't always win.

The Lakers, however, have to forget about all of this. Believe me, they're not worried about their all-time ranking. They're worried about being the best team in the 2001 NBA Finals.