LAKERS vs HAWKS (POST-GAME REPORT)

LAKERS 75 - HAWKS 86

Yahoo.com

It was the kind of shot Kobe Bryant might make—a 3-pointer that bounces high off the rim, ricochets off the top of the backboard, then drops through.
Mike Bibby was the one who pulled it off Sunday.
Bibby scored 21 points and buried Los Angeles with his improbable 3, leading the Atlanta Hawks to an 86-76 victory in which they took advantage of an ailing Bryant and dropped the Lakers farther behind Cleveland in the race for the NBA’s best overall record.
The playoff-bound Hawks led nearly the entire way, rebounding from consecutive home losses to two other elite teams, San Antonio and defending champion Boston. For Los Angeles, it was the lowest-scoring game of the season.
“We had just lost two very important games,” said Atlanta star Joe Johnson, who scored only 10 points but locked down Bryant at the defensive end. “We needed to get back on the winning side. This was probably one of our biggest games of the season.”
The Lakers secured the top seed in the Western Conference with a five-game winning streak, but Bryant had just 17 points on 7-of-19 shooting. He missed the morning meal and film session because of an upset stomach, then had his second straight subpar game.

“My stomach’s OK now,” said Bryant, coming off a 14-point performance at New Jersey. “When my medicine wears off, it’s going to be interesting.”
Bryant picked up two quick fouls and had to sit out most of the first quarter. He might have been better off just staying there, except no one filled the void.
Pau Gasol was the only other Los Angeles player in double figures, leading with 21 points, as the Lakers made just 35 percent (28 of 80) from the field.
“I don’t know exactly why we’re so out of whack and why we were missing so much,” Gasol said. “It was just a weird game, not recognizing how to attack them when they were switching.”
With Atlanta mired in an offensive meltdown, the Lakers pulled to 76-68 approaching the midway point of the final period. But Bibby locked it up for the Hawks with two huge 3-pointers.
His second took the last bit of life out of the Lakers, dropping through the hoop after two high bounces to make it 82-70 with 5 1/2 minutes remaining.
“I thought it was going over the backboard,” Bibby said. “I was like, ‘Oh yeah, it went in.’ I’ll take that.”
The Lakers suffered a setback in their bid for the best overall record—and guaranteed home-court advantage should they make it all the way to the finals. Cleveland extended its lead for the best record to two games with a 102-74 win over Dallas.
“We’re certainly not going to win out,” Los Angeles coach Phil Jackson said, “but we’re going to continue to put pressure on them.”
With Bryant mostly watching from the bench, the Lakers struggled to 5-of-23 shooting in the opening quarter. Los Angeles led 8-4 when their star picked up his second foul, trying to draw a charge in the backcourt just 4 minutes into the game.
“It took away his aggressiveness when he got those two quick fouls,” Johnson said.
Atlanta outscored the Lakers 16-5 the rest of the period for a 20-13 lead— Los Angeles’ lowest-scoring opening quarter of the season and less than half of its 27.3-point average.
Bryant returned for most of the second period, sparking the Lakers with his shooting and passing. He scored seven points, even though the Hawks tried to switch things up with little-used defensive specialist Mario West and frequent double teams.
West jawed a bit after a defensive stop on Bryant, which only seemed to fire him up. Isolated on West, he switched directions four times near the top of the key before sinking a 19-foot jumper. When the Hawks tried to double, Bryant found the open man. Gasol and Trevor Ariza both dunked off passes from him.
The Hawks, who had a 29-18 lead midway through the second, settled for a 40-39 advantage at the break. But Atlanta pulled away late in the third.
Maurice Evans hit a 3-pointer, and the Hawks turned it into a four-point play when Zaza Pachulia was elbowed in the side by Jordan Farmer while positioning for a possible rebound. Pachulia got up slowly but made the free throw.
Flip Murray missed a trey but Pachulia made a great tip in traffic for the basket, running back up the court with both hands in the air.
Then Johnson stole the ball from Bryant and passed ahead to Evans, who went in for a thunderous dunk that gave Atlanta a 72-56 lead. Bryant scored off a baseline scoop with 0.2 seconds left, but the Lakers went to the fourth down by 14.
Pachulia had 11 points and 13 rebounds, leading a strong effort by the thin Hawks bench. The reserves combined for 29 points and 15 rebounds, a much-needed effort with Johnson going 4 of 18 from the field.

Jackson: Bynum Not Close to Returning.

Got dammit Phil! Your killin' me Smalls!!! Give us something we want to hear. Be positive son!

Yahoo! Sports: It appears the Los Angeles Lakers will not get center Andrew Bynum back before the end of the regular season, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Coach Phil Jackson said Thursday while Bynum has moved beyond running on a treadmill his return will be closer to the start of the NBA playoffs than the orginal date of early April. Bynum is returning from a torn medial collateral ligament in his right knee.

“He has a considerable amount of time yet before he’s going to be even at practice with us,” Jackson said.

LAKERS vs NETS (POST-GAME REPORT)

LAKERS 103 - NETS 95

In Phil Jackson's 728th game as a Laker head coach, the Lakers go on to 4-0 on their road trip with a win last night against the Nets. While at the same time, clinching the best record in the west receiving home-court advantage up until the playoffs. "It's just one more step toward our goal," said Gasol. I like that.

With less than a minute left to go in the half, Kobe took a collision with Devin Harris and landed awkwardly on his right foot. With everyone in lala land in a scare, everyone then let a sigh of relief when Kobe came back in the 3rd to play. Kobe had bad shooting night, hitting only 5-19 but was a big part of a 24-2 run the Lakers went on in the 3rd hitting 3 consecutive threes. Kobe scored more than 12 this time against the Nets. This time around he scored 14! And of course added 9asts, and 4stls.

The man of the game was Purple Spain. Which the Nets had absolutely no answer for. First they tried fronting him; sorry PAU! Scores! Then they play him straight up; sorry PAU! Scored! Oh, you want to double him? PAU! Give the man his assist! He finished up the night with 36pts, 11rebs, 7asts, 2stls, and 2blks, on 14-19 shooting. SON! Odom, also had himself a double-double with 12pts and 11rebs. Fish was great with 18pts hitting 8 for 12. Ariza added 11pts, which is only one point less than what the entire Lakers bench produced. Last time was 56, and this time only 12? And every time they don't play well, makes Phil give the starters more minutes than they need. Step up bench mob.

Lakers were able to allow Vince Carter 20pts and 7reb. Not very good but not too bad either. Devin Harris put up 13pts while dishing 14ast on his first time back from his 5 game injury hiatus. Rookie and also starting center, Brook Lopez, did quite well and had himself a double-double with 16pts and 10rebs on an efficient 8-11 shooting. He has Devin to thank for that, giving him easy baskets no more than a foot away from the rim. Every one else did okay. Except for Jarvis Hayes who added 19pts off the bench. He also jacked up a couple of threes late in the game to bring them closer but they just weren't enough.

I thought the Lakers did an alright job. I mean their starters did, I'm not too sure about their bench. Kobe and Pau played +40 minutes, while Lamar and Ariza used up 36 minutes a piece. I can't stress it more that the bench needs to step it up. If they don't, then goodbye Finals. Up next is Joe Johnson and the Atlanta Hawks.

LAKERS vs NETS (PRE-GAME REPORT)

Going on their fourth game of the road trip. The Lakers face the New Jersey, Nets in tonight's game. Last meeting between the two in late November, the Lakers took the win by 27 points at their home floor. But since then, there's been some changes in this Los Angeles team.

On November 25th, the Lakers took an easy one at home against the Nets. Kobe only scored 12pts in a final score of 120, and it was all thanks to the Lakers bench who scored 56 of the total points. But since then the bench has changed a bit. With Bynum out, Lamar made the transition from the 6th man to the 3rd scoring option in the starting line-up. A trade sent Vlad to Bobcats for Brown and Morrison. Taking Luke off the bench and having him start for Vlad, and then eventually a switch between him and Ariza for the 3 spot. And now the bench don't look so good. Evident in the second quarter of the previous game against the Pistons. What happened to that bench that extended leads?

Last time Lakers were able to hold Vince Carter to only 14pts, but allowed young guard Devin Harris to score 21pts. Harris, who has been sidelined with a shoulder injury, looks to make his comeback against the Lakers tonight. I'm hoping since he's fresh back in the game, that he'll take it easy. The other Lopez, Brook has been the starting Center and has done pretty well 12.9pts, and 7.9rebs a game. Yi Jianlian, has not been so great and has been struggling with his shooting the past couple games. Their bench is a bit inconsistent. Except probably Jarvis Hayes who gives them plenty of production.

I'd say that the Lakers have this game in the bag. But if the inconsistent play of the bench continues, I'm no sure what the outcome might be. But who knows, maybe Kobe will score more than 12 points tonight.

LAKERS vs PISTONS (POST-GAME REPORT)

LAKERS 92 - PISTONS 77

Yahoo.com

Kobe Bryant had a reason to smile when he left The Palace for a change.
Bryant scored 30 points and helped the Los Angeles Lakers beat Detroit 92-77 Thursday night, snapping a nine-game losing streak on the Pistons’ home court.

“It feels good to finally walk out of here with a win,” said Bryant, who helped Los Angeles score the last 20 points of the third quarter to surge ahead for good.
Including three losses in the 2004 NBA finals, the Lakers hadn’t won on the road against the Pistons since Jan. 8, 2002.
The Western Conference-leading Lakers earned their fourth straight victory to pull within a game of NBA-leading Cleveland, and five in a row on the road for a league-high 26 this season.

“One of our goals is to have the best record before the playoffs start to have home-court advantage,” Lamar Odom acknowledged.
At this point, the once-mighty Pistons simply are hoping to make the playoffs.
They were without Allen Iverson (back), Richard Hamilton (groin) and Rasheed Wallace (calf) against the Lakers.
“They were short-handed,” Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. “We should’ve won.”
Hamilton is expected back on Saturday at Washington, where Wallace might also return, and the team hopes Iverson will be able to play next week.
“It’s a psychological lift knowing they’re going to return soon,” coach Michael Curry said.
Detroit desperately needs the trio on the court to salvage some pride in a season that has steadily unraveled since trading Chauncey Billups to Denver for Iverson in November.
The Pistons lost their third straight game and seventh of nine, falling into a seventh-place tie with Chicago in the Eastern Conference. They’re 18-19 at home and three games under .500 overall.
“They’ve had some trouble,” Byrant said. “But when the playoffs come around, I don’t think anybody wants to play this team.”
Detroit reserve Will Bynum had career highs with 25 points and 11 assists and helped his banged-up team outscore the Lakers 30-14 in the second quarter to lead 42-39.
The Pistons built a 10-point lead early in the second half and were ahead by five midway through the third quarter when Bryant made a layup and Trevor Ariza had consecutive putback dunks to spark a 20-0 run.
“We took Will Bynum out of the game and nobody else could do anything,” Detroit’s Tayshaun Prince said. “He’s the reason we had the lead at the half and the reason we made that comeback in the second quarter.
“Once he came out—end of the ballgame.”
Los Angeles looked as if it was going to rout the struggling Pistons when it led 25-12, marking a low first-quarter total for an opponent, but their Bynum-led bench dominated the second quarter.
The Lakers, though, ended any doubts about the outcome by outscoring Detroit 31-13 in the third quarter and coasted to victory.
Derek Fisher scored 15 points for the Lakers, and Odom and Pau Gasol each had 12 points.
“Those guys were playing well as a team and when they do that it’s a lot easier for Kobe to pick his spots,” Prince said.
Detroit’s Antonio McDyess had 14 points—making him its only double-digit scorer other than Bynum—and 12 rebounds.

Phil will start Bynum as a Reserve.

Well hopefully he's back before the Playoffs.

Inside The Lakers: “We’ll just have to see how he comes back, not when,” Jackson said. “Does he come back in condition where he can play 25 to 30 minutes? Is he going to be a ‘Starbury’ (Stephon Marbury of the Boston Celtics) where he’s playing 12 or 14 minutes a game, and then increase it that way? So, we’ll see how he fits in. He’s running on the court, and that’s about it. He’s doing some basketball skills. There’s a considerable amount of time before he’s even able to practice with us.”

LAKERS vs THUNDER (POST-GAME REPORT)

LAKERS 107 - THUNDER 89
Lakers sweep the Thunder with the win last night in Oklahoma City, going 2-0 so far in their road trip. Lakers led the whole way through the game and made sure they didn't lose the lead. I guess this win was that easy.

It was a night when every Laker that was suited, played. Six Laker players in double digits. Shooting 50% while holding the Thunder to only 41.5%. Yes, it was that kind of night as the Lakers made the game look effortless. And it was evident early on in the game when they took a 17 point at the end of the 1st, that they were focused. From then on Oklahoma couldn't bring the game any closer.

Kobe led the Lakers in scoring with 19pts while also filling up the box with 5asts, 4stls, 3rebs, 2blks, and zero turnovers. Pau nearly had a triple-double with 14pts, 14ebs, and 7asts. Lamar, though fouling out in the 4th, was aggressive every minute he was on the floor and had himself 18pts, and 6rebs, shooting 2-2 from behind the arc. Josh Powell contributed well off the bench adding 14pts to the 39 total points the bench produced. Sasha played poorly with 2pts shooting 1-6. But hey, he shot a combined 6-7 in the last two games, he was allowed to miss some this game. Luke was great with a good aggressive 11pts on 5-shooting. Even Shannon Brown got some burn and scored my two favorite baskets of the night.

They played some good defense tonight against the Thunder, holding their big 3(Durant, Green, & Westbook) below their season average. Durant finished with 24pts and 6rebs. Green added 12pts but was held to only 8 attempts. While Westbrook shot 2-11 from the field, but got the rest of his 10pts from the free throw line. They also had 6 players in double figures but only Collison was able to get into double digits off the bench with 10pts and 8rebs.

The Lakers played a great game with focus and energy. Consistency is all they lack. Well from the bench at least. But in recent games, they show what they're capable of. Giving us flashbacks of the early season when they not only kept the lead, but extended it. All they need is consistency. Up next, another revenge to check off the list in Detroit.