Phil Jackson has won just about every type of playoff series there is -- including against young, upstart teams like the Thunder -- and he remembers the formula:

"Win as quickly as possible," the Lakers coach said. "Apply the pressure and take advantage of the non-growth and inexperience that they may exhibit."

It's a simple plan, for sure, but not so easy to execute. Especially if you consider these five factors that could determine the outcome of the series:

1. Can Ron Artest control Kevin Durant?

Durant is one of the truly dominant offensive players in the game today, using his rangy 6-foot-9, 230-pound frame and silky-smooth shooting stroke to lead the league in scoring with 30.1 points per game in just his third season in the league. Artest, a former NBA Defensive Player of the Year, used to be one of the truly dominant defensive forces in the league, but hasn't shown it consistently in his 10th season (and first with the Lakers). Who gets the better of whom? Artest showed flashes of his old self in a stretch in late February, when he threw Paul Pierce, Danny Granger, Andre Iguodala, Shawn Marion and Carmelo Anthony "in a straitjacket," as Kobe Bryant put it. Artest would not comment on the specific defensive assignment, saying, "I just want to play hard and give 100 percent." The problem is, Durant's 100 percent might be worth a little bit more than Artest's 100 percent these days.

2. How much will injuries limit the Lakers?

It was a fun story for the first couple of months of the season, when Bryant was playing through elbow, back, knee, finger, groin and ankle ailments and still hitting game winners, but now there's no joy in recounting the tales of old scars for the Lakers, because many still haven't healed. Bryant missed four of the Lakers' final five regular-season games to rest his legs and alleviate swelling in his right knee and discomfort in his fractured right index finger. Andrew Bynum missed the Lakers' last 13 games with a strained left Achilles tendon. Sasha Vujacic could miss the entire first round with a severe left ankle sprain, and Luke Walton (back) and Jordan Farmar (left hamstring) are not at full strength heading into the series. All the postseason experience in the world can't magically heal the wounds the Lakers are dealing with right now. If Bryant can return as the player he's known to be, he can disguise a lot of those issues. If Bryant returns and plays like he did in his past three games, when he shot a combined 21-for-70 (30 percent), the Lakers will be in some trouble.

3. Which is the bigger advantage, the Lakers' size or the Thunder's speed?

The one good thing the Lakers have going for them right now is Pau Gasol. Gasol -- whom Jackson described as the Lakers' MVP over the last 30 games of the season -- has been even better in their final six games, averaging 26.5 points and 12.0 rebounds over that stretch. Add in a healthy Bynum, and the Lakers should have an imposing advantage in the middle over the Thunder's 6-9 power forward Jeff Green and the content-to-shoot-outside Nenad Krstic. However, Green, along with Thabo Sefolosha, Durant, Russell Westbrook, Eric Maynor and James Harden, give Oklahoma City a core of quick, skilled players that can force turnovers on defense and convert them into easily convertible fast-break opportunities.

4. Will the Lakers' bench come through?

Injuries to the starting lineup caused bench players like Lamar Odom and Shannon Brown to plug into the first five often this season, leaving the Lakers' reserves without two of their key pieces. Injuries to the remaining bench players depleted that pool even more. Los Angeles' second unit has been second-rate all year long, and now it goes up against a group that has steady contributors in Harden and Maynor in the backcourt and Serge Ibaka and Nick Collison in the frontcourt. Even if L.A. can get past Oklahoma City without any bench contribution, the stress it will put on its starters won't bode well for a long playoff run.

5. Is Russell Westbrook ready for prime time?

Quick guards have run roughshod over the Lakers in the past. Anybody remember Rajon Rondo in the 2008 Finals or Aaron Brooks in the 2009 playoffs? Westbrook will get his chance to audition for that same role. Westbrook came up huge in the Thunder's March win against the Lakers (23 points on 10-for-13 shooting and six assists) but he stumbled down the stretch, shooting just 39.4 percent in April. Add the extra pressure of returning to his hometown (he was born in Long Beach and attended UCLA), and there's a chance the 21-year-old will continue to melt down as the spotlight becomes more intense.

• Click here to read the full story