EMMANUEL DUNAND / AFP/Getty Images

Lakers shooting guard Kobe Bryant, left, moves the ball before Orlando's Courtney Lee can get to him during Game 5 of the NBA finals. Bryant, who averaged 32.4 points in the finals, also added a team-high 7.4 assists during the series.

Q: Assuming they keep their core players, how many years can this Lakers team compete at the top?
— Michael Bold, Oak Park, Calif.

A: That, of course, is a huge assumption, since there is significant debate whether Jerry Buss would be willing to spend on both Lamar Odom and Trevor Ariza this summer when they are free agents.

But with everyone intact? Well, consider how this hardly was the most stressful playoff run. Yes, it went seven games against Houston, but Utah was dispatched in five and Denver in six. Then there was the Magic in five.

Fact is, the West is not nearly the gauntlet it has been made out to be in recent years.

Phoenix is in free fall. Dallas is teetering. San Antonio appears to be considering a makeover that could have Manu Ginobili on the move. Houston has to deal with the free agency of Ron Artest and the continued uncertainty with Tracy McGrady.

Then there is Denver, which will have to hold it together with some of the most unstable personalities in the league; New Orleans and its financial concerns; and Portland with its not-quite-ready youth.

The window of opportunity therefore appears wide open. The Lakers even could afford to possibly deal away Andrew Bynum to open salary room for Odom and Ariza and still remain at the top. (Don't dismiss it. If the Lakers can get someone to take Luke Walton's bloated deal as a condition of acquiring Bynum, suddenly the salary issues are minimized, and the Lakers still are left with a starting front line of Gasol, Odom and Ariza.)

The ultimate issue might not be about "core players" but rather about the head coach. The last time Phil Jackson stepped aside, it got ugly in a hurry. It could come down to how long Jackson chooses to stay around.

Q: Joe Dumars recently hinted that the Pistons were being active in the trade market before July 1. Can you offer any insight, and is there any chance at all of Detroit pulling off a trade for the Clippers’ No. 1 pick?
— Steve Hampton, Loxley, Ala.

A: I don't think Detroit has the right mix of draft choices and young players to make it worthwhile for the Clippers, but I do think Dumars will look to make his move this summer while most of the league waits for the Summer of '10.

With Rasheed Wallace to depart as a free agent, it is possible a trade of Rip Hamilton follows next, as the overhaul continues.

There certainly will be plenty for Dumars to choose from at forward this summer, from Shawn Marion to Lamar Odom to, possibly, Carlos Boozer. But don't also discount second-tier, value free agents such as David Lee or Paul Millsap. An offer sheet for each could have their current teams thinking twice. There even could be a run at Trevor Ariza or Hedo Turkoglu.

At guard, there already are rumblings that Ben Gordon could be targeted as the partner of the future for Rodney Stuckey.

Q: I was wondering if a team can pay a player to exercise his opt-out clause? Specifically, can the Knicks pay Eddie Curry to go away?
— Abe, Brooklyn, N.Y.

A: Uh, no. A team can reach a settlement on the remaining terms on the player's contract, but the player has to agree to such a move.

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Further, Curry is at a point where he knows he has no avenue to recoup the $10.5 million he is due in 2009-10 and the $11.3 million he is due the following season.

At best, the Knicks could throw Curry's money into a trade for a player with an even longer contract, but that would defeat the goal of hoarding 2010 cap space.

No, the Knicks made their oversized bed with Curry and now have to deal with the fallout.

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