Phil Jackson (he's the coach) appeared on PTI's Five Good Minutes segment this afternoon.  He discussed the championship potential of this Lakers squad, efforts to get Pau Gasol last season, Kobe Bryant as the MVP and his evolution of a player, the Hack-a-Shaq, and why AK's sense of fashion needs to improve. 

Really, I thought that last one was unfair, because if a man wants to kick it like an 18th century Frenchman and strap on a pair of culottes, that's a personal choice worthy of PJ's respect.

BK

Avery Johnson is out in Dallas.  Meanwhile, in Phoenix, Suns GM Steve Kerr is denying reports that Mike D'Antoni is on his way out, but that doesn't necessarily mean much given that the Jack McCallum story for SI.com that broke the news said that the Suns weren't necessarily interested in firing D'Antoni... they just won't complain if he seeks employment elsewhere.

The wheel spins in the Western Conference.  Plenty more to come on this, I'm sure.  Fair to say, though, that the balance of power is now a lot different than it was a couple years back. 

BK

PROGRAMMING NOTE:  Join us for Purple, Gold, and Blue today at 11 am.  Our guest is Eric Neel of ESPN.com.  Click the widget on the side of the page, or go straight to our show page at Now Live.com.  

It was a landscape altering night around the Western Conference, but none of it had much to do with the "one-seeded" Lakers (visual aid at left).  After polishing off the Nuggets in Denver on Monday, the Lakers took Tuesday off to reflect on a job well done in Round 1.  They wanted a sweep, they got a sweep, thanks to contributions from the big guns such as Pau Gasol and Kobe Bryant to supporting players such as Luke Walton, and even a little defense from Vlad Radmanovic.   

All told, it puts Bryant past the first round of the playoffs for the first time since Shaquille O'Neal was sent to Miami, part of a long, often grueling path to rebuilding that seems to stretch a lot deeper into history than it actually does.  When the Lakers will kick off Round 2 is an open question after Houston spanked Utah Wednesday night to send the series back to Salt Lake for Game 6 on Friday, with the Jazz up 3-2.   

The other Western Conference semifinal is set, now that San Antonio polished off Phoenix and New Orleans sent Dallas packing, both series ending in a surprisingly tidy five games and setting the stage for a summer of intrigue.  Start with the coaching situation in the desert, where Sports Illustrated's Jack McCallum is reporting that Mike D'Antoni won't be back next year.  Call it irreconcilable differences between a coach and GM who don't see the game through the same prism, and aren't afraid to debate their points.  Or maybe the Suns just have the wrong model. 

There will also be forfeits levied toward whichever teams face Boston in the Eastern Conference semifinals and finals.

Ridiculous.

Were I a Suns die hard, I'd be especially furious right about now.

AK

Generally speaking, we consider Tom Petty a sage.  But in this case, waiting is actually pretty easy.  A perk, even.  Having polished off the Denver Nuggets in four games after last night's 107-101 win at Pepsi Center, the Lakers can kick back and wait for the conclusion of the Jazz/Rockets series, which continues tonight back in Houston, with the Rockets down 3-1.  In the meantime (which might not be that long, if Utah closes things out) the Lakers can bask in the glow of their first playoff series win in four seasons.  The fork-sticking win didn't come easy, unlike the first three, because Denver finally showed up to play all 48 minutes.  They made LA's 10-point halftime lead disappear, took a lead in the third, and kept things tight in the fourth, but it wasn't enough to overcome a huge fourth quarter for Kobe Bryant, who had 31 points as Carmelo Anthony continued to struggle for Denver.  But it wasn't just Bryant -- Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom, Vlad Radmanovic, and Luke Walton all played a role in the win and the box score shows once again that the Lakers used some solid ball movement to score points. 

If there was a central theme of the series -- beyond Denver's inability to cope with stress -- it was LA's ability to share the ball.  They finished the four games with a 66.2% assist rate.  When the Lakers move the ball that well, they're very difficult to beat. It's that teamwork that separated them from the Nuggets, who undoubtedly have plenty of talent. 

I'll give Denver credit.  They managed to do something that honestly I didn't think they had in them -- play 48 minutes of hard (though not necessarily smart) basketball, and even come from behind to close the game in the second half.  They were spirited (though not necessarily smart), spunky (see previous), and showed some fortitude (though not necessarily brains).   

Not that it mattered.

Despite the best push they saw in four tries from Denver and a game that frequently devolved into something that would have made Dr. James Naismith cry, the Lakers again showed they were too good for the Nuggets.  Final score, 107-101. LA breaks out the brooms and becomes the first Western Conference team to advance to the semifinals. Early, it was a combination of Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol.  Late, it was a whole lot of Kobe, as No. 24 poured in 15 over the final eight minutes. 

A visual aid never hurts.

In theory, all the Lakers need to do is exactly what they've been doing for the first three games.  Stay patient, show some discipline, and wait for Denver to freak out.

Sure, it's fun to end a series at home... but why bother with a Game 5 if you don't have to?

BK

Here goes... Denver is done.

I could give y'all more, but I opted instead to channel my "inner Nugget" and throw in a quick towel. 

All kidding aside, there's honestly no real point in a formal examination of tonight's game at Pepsi.  Yeah, I could break down topics like controlling tempo, what remains in the kitchen sink for Denver to throw at L.A., maintaining crisp ball movement, etc.  But at the end of the day, such analysis would amount to roughly "blah, blah, blah."  What's the point, since I think the Nuggets would actually prefer the series end, along with any theoretical obligation to put up a legitimate fight.  Carmelo Anthony admitted Denver quit during Game 3 like Larry Brown on "pick a job, any job."  Eduardo Najera and George Karl can disagree all they want.  I'm taking Melo's side.  Why?  Well, aside from the fact that sports fans watching the game in Braille could see the white flag waving, it's exactly how this Nuggets bunch acted during the 2006 playoffs when stuff starting going bad.  And while Kenyon Martin has managed to avoid behavior prompting Karl to suspend him, it's safe to say that two additional seasons hasn't increased this group's collective maturity and resolve.  Thus, unless Karl's game plan includes trotting out a brand new roster, consider this series done in about 8-9 hours.  I'd be stunned to see the Lakers lose.   

The Lakers have a quartet of chances remaining to put the Nuggets out of their literal misery, the first of which presents itself this evening (7:30 pm PST TNT).  The opportunity to put this baby to bed on their first try is a notion appealing to the visiting squad, although it's debatable whether the Nuggets themselves wouldn't prefer that even more.  Anyway you slice it, the Pepsi Center representatives have lost their collective composure and regrouping feels like a long shot.  Inspirational weight room decorations haven't done bupkis to drop temperatures back to "simmer."  Nuggets star Carmelo Anthony has been held in serious check by a Vlad Radmanovic/Luke Walton-led group effort, although the forward's own emotions may be doing more to negate his scoring than any hand in the kisser.

Whether you're referring to how the Lakers steamrollering the Nuggets 102-84 made it even more perfectly clear who'll win this series or a literal description of the effort Denver put forth in resistance, the Star Trek catchphrase is appropriate when discussing this series.  As Denver remained its own worst enemy throughout the series, the Lakers adjusted to whatever tempo and D was presented, continuing to exploit their opponent through non-stop, crisp ball movement.  Whatever home court advantage supposedly in Denver's pocket was quickly negated, or at least the part that would potentially result in shots being made.  The Lakers played some enthusiastic D, but their opponent's inability to hit the broad side of the ocean didn't exactly hurt (meaning they have something in common with Vlad Radmanovic).  The Lakers' win also featured nice balance beyond just its big three in the box score contributions.  Five dudes in double figures, including a wholly rejuvenated Luke Walton, who can't recall stringing together a better consecutive trio of games than the ones in this series.  Derek Fisher, who hit a pair from downtown in the third quarter, was another role player who helped deliver some knockout blows.