An emerging Bynum, 19, central to Lakers' success

	Andrew Bynum (left) is having a big impact for the Lakers despite averaging only 21.2 minutes through five games. John W. McDonough/SI
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The defining moment of Andrew Bynum's rookie season wasn't a 30-point outburst or an emphatic blocked shot that announced the arrival of the youngest player ever drafted in NBA history. No, the defining moment for Bynum was a well-placed elbow to a player who has a little bit of history in the Los Angeles area: Shaquille O'Neal.

Bynum's tussle with O'Neal -- which immediately followed a spinning dunk on the Diesel in a game last January -- was a clear signal to the rest of the league that in Bynum, well, the Lakers had found their man. They just had to develop him.

It hasn't taken long. Thrust into the starting lineup for an injured Kwame Brown (shoulder) and Chris Mihm (ankle), Bynum, who was the second-youngest (behind Utah's C.J. Miles) opening-night starter this season, has already exceeded expectations. In limited playing time (21.2 minutes a game), the 19-year-old has given the Lakers the type of post presence that has become an afterthought in Hollywood since O'Neal left town. Not bad for a guy who had never really watched game tape before last season.

Certainly no one is comparing Bynum to O'Neal (at least not yet), but a productive Bynum -- which is something L.A. did not count on before the season -- will go a long way toward determining the Lakers' postseason aspirations. Let's face it: Going into the season, the only team in Los Angeles that was considered a contender was the one that dresses just down the hallway from the Lakers at the Staples Center. Despite the additions of Vladimir Radmanovic and, to a lesser extent, Maurice Evans, the Lakers were considered borderline playoff candidates in a conference that has gotten stronger at the bottom.

An emerging Bynum, however, changes that equation. No matter how many highlight-reel dunks lead off SportsCenter, the NBA has been and always will be a man's game. Well, a big man's game, to be more precise. It's no coincidence that seven of the last eight NBA championships have been won by teams anchored by O'Neal and Tim Duncan. The league can implement all the rule changes it wants to open up the game and make it a more exciting product. That's all well and good -- for the regular season. Playoff basketball is a different animal altogether, with physical, grind-it-out teams generally having a decided advantage.

The Lakers already have a spectacular nucleus in place. Kobe Bryant is still the best offensive player in the game. Lamar Odom, who has been playing like a man with a purpose this season following the tragic death of his infant son, is arguably the most versatile player this side of Cleveland. Radmanovic, Luke Walton, Brown and Smush Parker are serviceable role players. The pieces are in place. You don't think Phil Jackson sees this? Word out of Los Angeles is that Jackson is interested in a contract extension.

They just need that anchor, the safety valve that can open up the floor on one end and stuff up the lane at the other. Is it too early to place such lofty expectations on a player like Bynum, who is barely removed from having to attend gym class? Absolutely. Sometimes we are so blinded by Bynum's size that we forget how young he really is. Before a game last season Bynum couldn't remember the last name of a friend for whom he wanted to leave tickets. So on the ticket envelope he wrote his friend's first name and a description: short and black. Bryant might still be laughing.

But in the NBA the learning curve is a flexible one that varies from player to player. Should Bynum bend it in his direction, the Lakers will once again be a team to reckon with.