Given the fact that the Los Angeles Lakers are the undisputed favorites in the Western Conference, their struggles in the first round of the playoffs are somewhat surprising. Thus, Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers will try to get back on track when they take on the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday at 1:30 a.m. GMT.

After a fairly disappointing performance in 2008-09 and a devastating 23-59 record, the Thunder pulled off an impressive turnaround in this year's NBA campaign as they were able to clinch a playoff berth in the competitive Western Conference, posting an impressive 50-32 record. Most importantly, franchise cornerstones Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook improved by leaps and bounds and helped the team from Oklahoma to make it to the upper echelon of the Western Conference. In their first round series with the Lakers, Durant and Westbrook have been phenomenal, averaging 26.8 and 21.8 points respectively.

In contrast, the Lakers are under considerable pressure to get their act together. After all, the team around Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol is one of the favorites to win it all in 2009-10, yet they are tied at two games a piece after four games versus the Thunder. One problem so far has been the inability of point guard Derek Fisher to keep Westbrook in front of him and prevent the young guard from penetrating in the lane. Likewise, Thabo Sefolosha defended Kobe Bryant as good as anyone in the league while forward Ron Artest shot just 30% from the field and 13% from beyond the arc. Therefore, it appears to be a justified assumption that Los Angeles will have to play up to their full potential to clinch a win in Oklahoma on Saturday night. The Lakers might be the favorites to make it past the Thunder but will inevitably have to find a way to contain All-Star Kevin Durant down the stretch.

You can watch all games of the Los Angeles Lakers and Oklahoma City Thunder right here on www.watchlivenba.com, the home of NBA live streaming.