"We are ahead of San Antonio BY NINE GAMES in the lead of the Western Conference. We have the best record in the league. Andrew Bynum will be returning soon. Overall, this team is healthy."

Like how the regular season is important but still does not say 100% of the time how this team will do in the playoffs. Besides we are so called chasing for the best record against the Cavaliers. Right now we have the tie breaker but the Cavaliers are still a good team. It only takes one loss by either team. Like you said Jon, we should get some of the back up role players into the game to see their game. Unfortunately because Cleveland has also a good record the Lakers will have to use their regulars more to get a shot at the best record in the entire NBA. Best way are through blowouts when the bench can play 20+ minutes at least.

If we had a one game lead against Cleveland and it was the last game of the season we can afford that loss to rest for the playoffs. Until then every game is important.

Plus you have to build up Jordan's/Sasha's/Josh's confidence and make sure their heads in right so when the playoffs do come they can contribute with limited minutes and not cry that they can't do well in limited minutes.

Blowing a 17 point lead at home is ok maybe for the regular season but it has to be different in the playoffs.

-KB Blitz

This could be a close game. Sixers have to continue winning to protect the 6th seed standing in the East. They have a tough schedule ahead w/ 11 games on the road, have to face their nearest threat the Pistons 2x, Cavaliers 2x and Celtics once. It is possible that they could be eliminated from the Magic 8 because it's only 3 1/2 games spread separating them from the 9th place. Lakers may be just coasting along while Sixers are on a survival mode.

QUOTE OF THE DAY:

Let's just enjoy the season guys...

Posted by: Charles

sumo wrestling champ

I wish Morrison well...he seems to have a good perspective and an ability to block out the criticism.I think he will be successful eventually although it might be hard with the lakers.His rookie season he was one of the least efficient starters in the league bad shooting percentage and D but is that so unusual?
If he gets his confidence back theres no reason why he can't be a Kyle Korver type player for someone when he develops a bit.Not a bust yet - no way....with the wrong team possibly but then again it might be quite good for him to be in such an environment and learn and practise without the pressure of actually playing.He's got the right attitude anyway and seems pretty smart on the whole.

Ex,

Smart ass. haha

AK

If by "bust" you mean that someone does not live up to the hype, then I will go out on a limb and say "He is a bust."

If by "bust" you mean that he won't have a decent NBA career, then it is probably way too soon to make that statement.

Debunking myths:

Kobe never mythes an important shot.

Charles,

To many avid sports fans, "just enjoying the season" means meaningless heated debates about unknowable, unprovable predictions and opinions.

Hence our Mike T, who generated thousands of posts all by his outrageous self, enjoying the hell out of every negative one of them.

Sorry for the OT post.

Went over to the Celtics blog to wallow in their drunken misery on St. Patty's Day and saw this blasphemous representation of our beloved jersey: http://tinyurl.com/daynn4. Scroll down a bit.

Can you imagine the response at the old Fabulous Forum if we saw someone wearing this???

Why do so many role players leave the Lakers and then put hate on Kobe? It just seems pretty strange to me that lots of guys have left the organization hating Kobe. Kind of makes you wonder.

ex - you are on fire today, sir. So glad you're on OUR side! I pity the fool...

Sometimes Lamar Odom should just shutup... Seriously...

We all *think* he cares, but he speaks as if the way the Lakers play is 100% gravy and no improvement is necessary. Winners constantly improve. See Kobe B., See Tiger Woods.

This is the quote that I dont like:
" "Teams are going to go on runs and sometimes you give up a lead," forward Lamar Odom said. "We expect it." Then, after a pause, he added, "We kill them at the end of the game."

Give Up A Lead? You expect it? I'm not sure I like that "wilt to pressure" mentality. How about fight for a lead to the end? How about never let up on a team? How about counter good play from the other team with good play from yourself?

I dont like the mentality of "They are going to make some runs and get the lead, that's OK".

Maybe, he was mispoken. But giving up 15 pt leads should NEVER be in the cards.Let's talking about minimizing opposition runs and playing well throughout the game.

Only Lamar Odom.

Or maybe only me for being so GHE.

Faith - since you seem to be the purveyor of bandwagons today, throw me on a couple. The Sasha one and the Bench Mob Breakout one to name a few. Might as well be on all of them. That way you always have a ride to the parade.

Faith,

Add me to both bandwagons, please. We've got to get the machine up and running.

Go Lakers!

Defense tonight!

---RE-POST---

THE ARIZA FACTOR…

Phil Jackson’s decision to start Trevor Ariza has completely changed the dynamic of the Lakers’ likely lineup rotation once Andrew Bynum is ready to return as the starting center. Assuming that Ariza continues to thrive as a starter, this means Lamar Odom for sure will be returning to the Bench Mob when Drew is ready to return to the starting lineup.

Knowing how Machiavellian Phil’s brain works, you have to wonder if all of this switching starters stuff is just part of a pre-conceived master plan that he dreamed up one night while stoned on natural herbs and spirituality in some remote Montana Indian smokehouse. Seriously, it is very likely that Phil intended for Ariza to move into the starting lineup this year and has been grooming him all along, using Luke to keep his starting spot warm.

It would also have been embarrassing for the Lakers, Luke, and Lamar if anybody but Luke went back to the bench when Drew returned. Now, with one push of a button, Phil has left Lamar in the position where it is obviously in the team’s best interest for Lamar to return to the bench even though he would prefer and probably plays better as a starter. Hopefully, Lamar will continue to play well and Phil will reward him with starter minutes.

I have to admit that I was a little skeptical of the move originally because Trevor had not been playing well ever since he suffered that concussion but so far the move has been a stroke of genius as Trevor has used the opportunity to start to break out of his slump and has played extremely well. While I am sure he will struggle at times and may not shoot as well as he has, he has a definite chance to lock up the small forward starting position.

With all the talk on the blog about defense and the Bench Mob, think about what Phil did. In a single brilliant stroke, he not only solved the Lamar Odom dilemma but also went a long way towards solving the defense and Bench Mob problems. With Ariza starting, the Lakers defense is going to much stronger, especially when Drew is back to man the paint. Kobe, Fish, Trevor, Pau, and Drew are going to be a very formidable starting lineup.

As for the Bench Mob, nothing like getting back Lamar and Luke to solve their problems and get them back to being that killer force that actually increases rather than loses leads. Lamar, Luke, Jordan, Sasha, and Josh are surely the best second unit in the league and the talk again will be whether they could actually beat some other teams’ staring lineups. Once Bynum returns, the dominos fall and everybody can go back to their own positions, the roles that Phil had conjured for them well before the season had even started.

So it looks like next year’s starting small forward had become this year’s starting small forward. While I think we may miss Luke or Lamar’s ball handling and playmaking skills at times, I think Trevor’s defense, energy, and scoring will make up for it. It’s been a while coming but I think most of us are happy with the development. Phil is a genius. I think this move may end up being the move that locks the team into 10-player deep high gear as they streak down the stretch toward an invincible 16-0 sweep in the playoffs.

Lakers – NBA Champs,
Phil Jackson – COY.
Mitch Kupchak – EOY.
Kobe Bryant – Double MVP
Andrew Bynum - TNGLC

JMNSHBO!
DBFTT!

Tom

add me to both bandwagons!!!

christopher blake

Thanks for the heads up. Looks like a Shaq-Nashcoholics anonymous website.

Faith..what the heck....Throw me on as well....

Re Adam Morrison....I just get the feeling this guy can still be pretty good...not great but better than what Vlad was giving us...When its all said and done,and Adam gets healthy he will be a lot more mentally stable than Sasha....If Sasha could get that side of his game in order,his game would get back to the same standard as last year...

Thanks to Xodus (fellow vet), Fan of the mamba (another fellow blog vet), ZZ (welcome) for joining.

I'll post the updated list tomorrow.

Lakertom, come on dude join the Sasha Breakout Bandwagon lol. The guy hates the celtics, that's enough reason to root for him imo.

Now back to business...you know I agree with the killer instinct part. Not so much the starters...though they too have that tendency, but the bench. When you're up 15 you need to push it to 30, then close it out. To do that you need to play D, and they have yet to really show that.

Who cares about hurt feelings or whatnot, next time don't get blown out. I mean no punk act or anything, don't be trash talking or shooting at 20 seconds left in the lock...that's the kind of thing the Cs would do. We're above that. That said, for once I'd actually like for the team to not only push the envelope but close it out consistently. Pau, Kobe, Fish has logged too many minutes thus far in this season to make it "ok" for them to come back in the 4th after what is a blowout game.

Incidentally that's exactly why we have the bandwagons lol.

Go Lakers!

Faith,

>>> Lakertom, come on dude join the Sasha Breakout Bandwagon lol. The guy hates
>>> the celtics, that's enough reason to root for him imo.

Put me on that bandwagon, too, Faith. I did not mean any disrespect to Sasha. He is just pressing right now like Jordan. As I said before, we will drink a toast when we all get together for the parade for the great contribution from the Bench Mob. Sasha will be fine just as Jordan will be.

Tom

FROM NEW YORK

BONSOIR GUYS,

TONIGHT=WIN

LOVE TO ALL

LakerTom,

I agree that we likely won't win the Chip without our man Drew. But that doesn't mean he's more important than Gasol. Drew (health permitting) is going to be battling with Dwight for best center in the world status in about 3-4 years, but right now he's No. 3 to Kobe and Gasol. Hopefully Farmar can get out of his own way so he, Drew and Ariza can lead this team in the future.

And thank you for reminding me of the glory days of Florida basketball. We just missed the tourney for the second straight year. ugh

LakerinBC,

>>> LT, I'm as much of a Drew- is the next great Laker center fan as you are,
>>> but given how much time it took Bynum to get his game shape and timing
>>> back between the 2 injuries, I'm not confident that he will be back 100%
>>> even by the Finals. Though an 80% Drew will be enough for Lakers to beat
>>> Cleveland or Boston.

We don’t disagree. Drew will surely start off coming off the bench. Hopefully, since there was no surgery involved this year and the injury much less severe, Drew will be able to get back into the swing of things and be ready to start sometime during the playoffs. If he actually gets back the first week of April and is able to play as well as he was before getting injured (which may be asking too much :), then I look for the Lakers to sweep through the playoffs. JMNSHBO! DNFTT!

Tom

Since I already went GHE day, let me go GHF:
- This Laker team without Bynum is at worst the 2nd best team in the league.
- With Bynum we are the unquestioned depth and the trickle down effect that Bynum's quality minutes will give us will be invaluable.
- If Kobe is able to get some rest during these last weeks, watchout NBA.
- I lightweight want Portland 1st round. Something about Joel Pryzbilla acting like he is just that sauce. Portland gets way too excited about the Lakers and Laker fans really dont care that much. We whoop them ALL the time. It would be great to sweep them.
- If the Utah v. NO the 1st round that would be the best matchup by far. And knockout 2 of our "rivals" early.

- Don't you kind of want Cleveland in the Finals? Kobe vs. LeBron would be classic and beating the Cavs in 5 would permanently stop Lebron v. Kobe debates...well at least for another year!

"hey anna from beyond:"
Posted by: good news | March 17, 2009 at 09:52 AM

Am I dead?

Korey,

>>> Don't you kind of want Cleveland in the Finals? Kobe vs. LeBron would be classic
>>> and beating the Cavs in 5 would permanently stop Lebron v. Kobe debates...well
>>> at least for another year!

I have to say even though I hate the Celtics, I understand where you are coming from. And it really does seem that LeBron becoming the “recognized” greatest player in the world is plugged so much by ESPN and the media that is almost seems to be inevitable.

I still think Kobe deserves and will win his second straight regular season MVP even though all he and we really care about is the championship and Finals MVP. If the Crab King wins the regular season MVP, I wouldn’t mind at all having the Lakers sweep the Cavaliers in the NBA Finals, with Kobe winning MVP. That would put the right kind of taste in LeBron’s ugly mouth. Just another over-the-top Lakers and Kobe fan.

Tom

Repost...
What happens when a machine is malfunctioning?
First, we try the obvious, gently using minor adjustments.
If that didn't worked, we all, at least once in a lifetime used the plan "B", punching and kicking it to work.

Give Sasha some "B"!!!

GO LAKERS!!

LakerTom

Just to fan the flames of the Pau vs. Drew debate:

http://tinyurl.com/d2s9e8

http://tinyurl.com/d9atxd

I suggest checking out Pau's relative productivity at PF and C, Pau's productivity at center as compared to Drew's and the "net points" for each.

I believe these stats were similar (at least relatively similar) prior to Drew's injury (I was keeping tabs on this, but my memory is far from perfect).

I take these types of statistical analyses with a grain of salt, but I tend to believe these are meaningful since Pau and Drew play with the same cast.

btw, has anyone else checked out Hollinger's article on his choice for ROY. His choice is Lopez (there is a case to made for that choice), but look at what he says when he compares Love and Mayo. Love is 1st among rookies in Hollinger's PER rankings and Mayo 15th, but it's clear that he would choose Mayo over Love for ROY. I guess even John doesn't really buy into the PER concept. He just uses it to cherry pick based on his own biases.

Ms Faith,

Yes, I've read that from Pau as well. One of my sons, his coach and I have been following his D game on in slo mo. He seems to pick his spots on D as well, which would make sense considering potential foul trouble.

Obviously, the man is having a career year since the Olympics.

He probably wouldn't get the Faith Defensive POY award, but that coveted award goes only to the best of the best... if not best looking. lol

V

Jamie,

Thanks for your input. You may be right. In the end, it will depend on which Drew we get. I, of course, am hoping we get the same Drew we had before he got hurt. If we are lucky, we will. If we are not lucky, we won’t get that until next year but will still win the championship this year. One way or another, even a little Drew will help.

Tom

I was sitting yesterday pondering Lebron James and realized something..We really should be taking this guy more seriously..Think about all the points he is scoring and he 1) Has no post-up game.. 2) Barely has an outside shot and 3) no "in between" game to speak of

How is a guy with none of those things one of the highest scorers in the league? Its freaking rediculous if you think about it..He is so dominant physically for his position it is just sick. Although he is one knee injury away from his career being over unless he develops the rest of his game.

It still makes you wonder..Has there ever been anyone with just 2 skills(layup/dunk or 3 pointer) that scores as much as he does? oh my bad, I forgot his crab dribble skill too!

The D
It was Huey Lewis who sued Ray Parker Jr

LakerTom,

I agree that if Drew were to continue his play from prior to his injury he would be our No. 2 guy but I'm just not ready to say that he's capable of doing that just yet over a full season. Unfortunately for Drew he's gotten hurt two seasons in a row just as he was hitting his stride.

Xodus,

Nothing wrong with that position. Let’s hope my hyperbolic position comes true. LOL.

Tom

Sasha's latest twitter:

SashaVujacic: Today is a great day! Just finished practice about to go home and have a lunch with my fam. Tonights game! I have all my focus on it!

Dude! He writes almost as you'd imagine him talking -- especially if you've seen "Machine open! Kobe! Open!"

Well, I'll debunk a myth as well...

A lot of people here keep whining that defense wins championships and the Lakers'
defense isn't good enough and stuff like that. So I thought I'd review some statistics
of previous NBA Champions coached by Phil Jackson to compare how they matched
up with the rest of the league on offense and defense.

I also threw in point differential, since it seems to be the most heavily weighted statistic
in John Hollinger's rankings on espn. Here are the three numbers shown for each
season:

PTD = Point differential - if the team averages 105 points a game and gives up 100 points
a game, then the PTD is 5.

Def = Defensive rating - points allowed per 100 possessions

Off = Offensive rating - points scored per 100 possessions

The numbers in parentheses indicate the team's rank in the leauge on that stat

1990-91 - PTD = 9.0 (1st), Def = 105.2 (7th), Off = 114.6 (1st)

1991-92 - PTD = 10.4 (1st), Def = 104.5 (4th), Off = 115.5 (1st)

1992-93 - PTD = 6.3 (4th), Def = 106.1 (7th), Off = 112.9 (1st)

1995-96 - PTD = 12.3 (1st), Def = 101.8 (1st), Off = 115.2 (1st)

1996-97 - PTD = 10.8 (1st), Def = 102.4 (4th), Off = 114.4 (1st)

1997-98 - PTD = 7.1 (3rd), Def = 99.8 (3rd), Off = 107.7 (8th)

(BTW, in 97-98, the Lakers were 1st in point differential... Hollinger would have had
them ranked highest going into the playoffs, for what that's worth)

Also consider the first year Michael Jordan came back (after failing at baseball):

1994-95 - PTD = 4.8 (5th), Def = 104.3 (2nd), Off = 109.5 (10th)

So the one year with Michael and Scottie and PJ that they didn't win a championship,
it wasn't that their defense let them down. In fact they played the best defense they
had played together to that point. They played the best defense in the league, and
they didn't even make it to the finals... It was their OFFENSE that failed them.

To add to the data set, let's consider the Lakers threepeat:

1999-2000 - PTD = 8.5 (1st), Def = 98.2 (1st), Off = 107.3 (4th)

2000-2001 - PTD = 3.4 (7th), Def = 104.8 (21st), Off = 109.4 (2nd)

2001-2002 - PTD = 7.2 (2nd), Def = 101.7 (7th), Off = 109.4 (2nd)

Note that part of the problem in the 2000-2001 season was that Derek Fisher was out
injured most of the season, Ron Harper missed almost half the season, and Kobe
missed 14 games as well. With so many games missed to injury with subs filling
in for more talented players, the defense slipped a bit. When they were all healthy
for the playoffs, they steamrolled to a 15-1 record.

So looking at the results of PJ coached triangle teams, it seems that as long as the
defense is relatively good and the offense is one of the top 2 in the league, then they
win it all. Or if the offense is a little off, then the defense has to be way up there to
make up for it.

Now consider this season's numbers (to this point):

2008-2009 - PTD = 7.8 (3rd), Def = 105.6 (6th), Off 113.8 (1st)

And also bear in mind their starting center is out with injury and will be back for the
playoffs and will shore up that defense number a little bit.

I'd say the Lakers are right where they oughta be.

Can I be added on the Bench Mob Breakout Bandwagon also?

LTLF,
"I'd say the Lakers are right where they oughta be."

Sorry, not buying it. That would mean that PJ knows what he is doing, and clearly he doesn't.

And, even if you combined all six of the centers' calves into one, Billy Crystal still wouldn't think it was worth saving.

"praised Sun Yue's effort while playing with the small club "

Is that a euphemism?

Posted by: exhelodrvr........

Dude....that's an old crappy attack...yeah we got the innuendo...it's really borderline cute and sad that you brought up the myth.....I am Chinese and I could tell you that I havn't had any complaints...did notice one time that sometimes if you put a boat into a BIG ocean, versus a small pond...that ocean has trouble figuring out where the boat is.....man I miss last regular, tighter than Donald Sterlings spending habits, on 2nd thought he has spent recently, just wastefully......

Hey if Morrison is starting to get his name associated net to "bust", and I hope not, what about JJ Redick....oops I just checked he slid to #11.....That did not look like a real solid draft with Barnyarney going first....did notice Brandon Roy (and like Hell will I call him "B-Roy".....that is so dumb, who started that, I'll pay for the bullett), Gay, Aldridge....and here's a bit of tidbit that have them staring at each other in the locker room...pick #25 Shannon Brown......pick #26 Jordan Farmar.....hmmmmmmmm..... I hope they both work out, maybe they will be the backcourt of the future, and no I am not giving up on Sun......I think Jordan will settle down once he knows the spot is his. I'm not putting any faith in Sasha this year....in fact I think maybe he'll be traded, I don't analyze the 2010 scenario, as Y2K was harmless, maybe we could do a package deal and get Mike Miller who looks horrible on the Lakers and on the Kobe workout program........