Watched the Lakers play like the Showtime Lakers (eventually) last night as the beat the Magic in overtime. My excitement was tempered somewhat when I realized that Orlando is in second-to-last place in the Eastern Conference.

But, in the words of every junior high P.E. coach in existence, past or present, “A W’s a W.”

Which makes it all the more painful remembering the summer league I played in while in Junior High. I don’t remember the name, but the uniforms were pretty snazzy, and we got to play in actual gyms as opposed to the blacktop of the playground that we were used to. Our team was comprised of the best players in the school, having been brought together by some political cheating (the teams were supposed to be completely random throughout the school district). The roster consisted of the same people I played with or against every day at lunch. I’d make my may way to the courts and battle it out for a good 30 minutes with the same group of people every time. It was always my team against the other David’s team. They were the bad guys we were the good guys. I was our point guard, he was their point guard. And throughout the week we would trade wins back and forth, neither team ever really having a dominant advantage. It was quite the dynasty.

At any rate, the other David’s dad happened to be a coach for a summer league team and he was able to jockey in position enough to bring us all together. We were the best of the best and we were going to be unstoppable.

I really shouldn’t have crossed out “going to be”.

We won exactly zero out of fourteen games. Which, I might add, is something of a spectacular failure if I do say so myself. For whatever reason, we just didn’t gel together as a team. Great apart. Terrible together. Which is my lame analogy for the way the Lakers have been looking lately. Just because you throw a bunch of superstars together doesn’t a championship make. But that’s what the best coach (after Pat, of course) is paid for, to bring the people together. We’ll get there, Los Angeles. Never you worry.