Today I was going to talk about how mad I am about the way the NBA playoffs are going. Mad about not only the fact the Lakers were losing, but also the way they lost, especially Thursday night.

The three-time defending world champions played like they would rather have been somewhere else. And if they keep playing like they did, they’re going to be somewhere else real soon.

I was pissed off and wanted the whole world to know. But I slept on it and realized something: I’m a spoiled sports fan. More specifically, I’m a spoiled basketball fan.

Not able to sleep Thursday night, I tried to put it into perspective by imagining that I was a fan of another team.

What if I was a Timberwolves fan and my team had never won a playoff series despite having one of the top two or three players in the league on my team? What if I liked the Clippers, who, despite a seemingly solid lineup and high expectations couldn’t make the playoffs this year? (They need to move back to San Diego.)

Suppose I was a fan of any team in the Eastern Conference (i.e. Sixers, Pacers, Nets) and I knew my team, even if it made it to the finals, didn’t stand a chance against the west.

I also thought about how much the league has grown to where there are so many good teams and so much competition. I know the Kings gave the Lakers a scare last year, but for the past three or so years, the winner of any Lakers’ playoff series was more-or-less a foregone conclusion.

All this introspection and putting things into perspective gave me more respect for fans of other teams, but part of me still wanted to scratch my eyeballs out and pound my head against the wall in frustration.

I mean what if I was a Kings fan? (Props to y’all for still being around and still being as fervent as ever, not that you need any more praise). I don’t know what I would have done if my team had been oh-so-close for years, never getting the chance to compete for the championship.

Wait, yes I do. I did it during high school. I waited patiently while my team wallowed in rebuilding and heartbreak. And what happened? Eventually the team I love came through and it has won the championship each of my first three years of college.

So hang in there. (Not that you need me to tell you that.) Take it from a spoiled fan who’s found some perspective. Maybe your team eventually will win. Of course your team, whoever they are, might break down, never make it to the Promised Land, and turn out to be the Red Sox of basketball. That’d be a bummer.