They were relatively new teams that don’t have the national branded heritage yet ... And then it was a sweep. It’s like the NBA, when you get the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers, big branded teams, you get better ratings. 
Selected and fresh photos from around the web.
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Editor's pick
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A puppy stands on a truck carrying people to be evacuated from the area in preparation for the approach of Hurricane Gustav in Batabano, on the southern coast of Cuba, August 30, 2008. Powerful Hurricane Gustav roared toward western Cuba on Saturday with 125 mph (205 kph) winds on its way to the oil-rich Gulf of Mexico after a deadly pass through the Caribbean.
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BANGKOK, THAILAND - AUGUST 30: A member of Anti-government People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) stands behind barbed wire outside Government on August 30, 2008, in Bangkok, Thailand. The protesters want to unseat the seven-month old coalition government lead by Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej.
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Georgian soldiers run near a blazing building after a Russian bombardment in Gori, 80 km (50 miles) from Tbilisi, August 9, 2008. A Russian warplane dropped a bomb on an apartment block in the Georgian town of Gori on Saturday, killing at least 5 people, a Reuters reporter said. The bomb hit the five-story building in Gori close to Georgia's embattled breakaway province of South Ossetia when Russian warplanes carried out a raid against military targets around the town.
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CARSON, CA - JULY 31: Andre Villa practices in the Moto X Freestyle during the summer X Games 14 at Home Depot Center on July 31, 2008 in Carson, California.
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Hot off the wire
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Anti-government protesters sleep outside the Government House in Bangkok, Thailand, early Monday, Sept. 8, 2008. Thailand's embattled prime minister denied a rift with the army Sunday and dismissed the possibility of a coup to overthrow his government later this month when he travels to New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly meetings.
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Carolina Panthers Dante Rosario (partially obscured) is mobbed by teammates Nick Goings (37), Julius Peppers (90), Jordan Gross (67) and Jeremy Bridges (73) after catching the game winning touchdown pass in the final seconds to defeat the San Diego Chargers in their NFL football game in San Diego, California September 7, 2008.
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NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 07: Actors Brendan Cowell (L) , Rose Byrne (C) and Glenn Close look on before the women's singles finals between Serena Williams of the United States and Jelena Jankovic of Serbia during Day 14 of the 2008 U.S. Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on September 7, 2008 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City.
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Recently starred
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NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain serves against Andy Murray of Great Britain during their semifinal match on Day 14 of the 2008 U.S. Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on September 7, 2008 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City.
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NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain returns a shot against Andy Murray of Great Britain during their semifinal match on Day 14 of the 2008 U.S. Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on September 7, 2008 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City.
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Roger Federer of Switzerland reacts to match point, beating Novak Djokovic of Serbia during their semi-final match at the U.S. Open tennis tournament in Flushing Meadows in New York, September 6, 2008.
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Polish musician Doda sings during the London Live, Polish Music Festival at Wembley Arena, London, on September 7, 2008.
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Quotes about Los Angeles Lakers
They were relatively new teams that don’t have the national branded heritage yet ... And then it was a sweep. It’s like the NBA, when you get the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers, big branded teams, you get better ratings.
said David Levy
We were looking at some focus group results, and in the 25-35-year-old range, when they were asked, 'What do you know about America?' The one thing that always came up was the [Los Angeles] Lakers
said Judith Jones
The Lakers gave him tremendous support during that time ... and he will be forever grateful. He is very close to Mitch Kupchak, who has been an unbelievable friend to him, he is a big fan of [Coach] Phil [Jackson], he's a very popular guy in the locker room and he loves it in Los Angeles. That all makes it very difficult to leave, but that being said, he's in the business of basketball and he wants to be the best player he can become.
said Mark Bartelstein
More than 2,850 statistical events were seamlessly gathered and distributed in real time using Lenovo PCs during this season's Finals match-up between the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics
said Michael Gliedman
in FOX Business
Boston Celtics guard Ray Allen left Tuesday’s Game Six of the NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers with 4:20 left in the first quarter after getting hit in the face. Allen fell to his knees after driving to the basket and scoring against Lakers forward Lamar Odom.
was said
in Inside Hoops
Quotes from articles mentioning Los Angeles Lakers
Odom is a relatively happy facilitator but with Bynum returning, anybody coming in becomes the fourth option. Will Artest embrace that role? Odom will - and [additionally] will help facilitate the offense with the second team. Odom is really an incredible player . . . undervalued by the fans.
was said
in Hoopsworld
Especially with Andrew and the same group, we won't be short two games like we were this year. I can guarantee you that ... We are going to work really hard. We want to win it. We lost our first finals and I think we have a lot more to go.
said Sasha Vujacic
in China Post
Obviously, we really don't know because we haven't all played together, but with Gasol and Bynum down there with the players that we have, I'm pretty sure it will
was said
in China Post
Definitely want to be able to go out there and play, help your teammates out ... Not being able to do that kind of stinks, especially when you lose by a little bit like we did last time. You lose by rebounds, blocked shots, turnovers; people walking down getting layups and that's a big part of my job as a center.
was said
in China Post
Rebounding and shot-blocker in the middle. He solves a couple of those.
said Kobe Bryant
in China Post
They overran us. Garnett knocked Pau down in the lane and scored an easy basket in the first four or five possessions and set kind of a tone
said Phil Jackson
in China Post
No, we're fine. I think what we have to do is continue to work. That's really the key, understanding that this isn't guaranteed to anybody. There are people who have gotten here before and never gotten back, so it's important for us to understand that, to work hard and come back next year ready to go
said Kobe Bryant
