these talks and meetings are extremely necessary.

Broderick....

This is an example of the worst type of journalism...a big headline with absolutely no information. "Kobe speaks out..."? Well, what did he say? Gimme a break!!!

Good job Brod Turner. We do need to know that the team is concerned. They care and want to come up with a re-committment to solutions for what's wrong. We don't need to know what Kobe said but we do need to know that the team has some "testy" feelings in their inner fight. Obviously, all the fans care but we don't play the game.

Many of a Floridian have told me that once you get two miles from the beach, Florida suddenly becomes a very, very weird place.
GO LAKERS!!!!
Posted by: Jon K. | March 06, 2010 at 12:48 PM

Jon K,

Weird as compared to what?
Really now Jon, that is kind of a silly judgement.
I have lived all over the US including NY, MD, VA, NC, LA, SF, MN, and FL.
In addition, I have visited more cities in the US than I can count on all my fingers and toes.
FL does not become a weird place 2 miles from the beach. I realize you are just repeating what you said someone else told you, but it doesn't even make any sense.
FL is no weirder than any other state other than they are pro's at screwing up the election process but thats a different story. I also wouldn't consider FL as really 'bible belt' oriented, there are so many people here from other states it's really quite a mix.
There is weirdness in every city/state I have ever lived in. FL is no better or worse in that respect. But then, maybe I am just so weird I don't notice the weirdness.

PS:
I liked the post about the Zen Masters, resonated.

Broderick Turner is alright.

I've actively campaigned for the firing of most of the L.A. Times sports staff , but not Brad Turner.

He's alright.

What do we play for? RINGS!!!!

Lakers Today... Lakers Tomorrow... Lakers Forever.

GO LAKERS!!!

Larry Brown did to Phil the same thing he did as Piston's coach in the 2004 Finals. In that series if you remember specifically after game 2 in that series Larry extended his defense to force the Lakers to use up most of the shot clock while at the same time single covering Shaq. They extended the defense and also doubled Kobe on the perimeter and sent a third defender to Kobe when he put the ball on the floor forcing him to give it up.
I watched a documentary on NBA TV about this series and during one timeout you can hear Larry Brown exhorting his team to continue what it was doing because "PHIL WILL NOT MAKE ANY ADJUSTMENTS"........
The key to that series for Coach Brown was not Shaq.......it was stopping Kobe! The only game the Lakers won in that series was game 2.......that was the game ironically that Kobe led the team in scoring and the Lakers abandoned the triangle offense and placed Kobe in pick n roll situations and allowed Kobe to break the defense down and the Pistons had to pick their poison................Phil went back to the triangle in Detroit and the Lakers lost 3 straight by huge numbers and Phil was summarily fired.
You need another example? Let's go to Finals 2008 against Boston.......This was game 4........the game that Boston came back from a 20 point deficit. We remember Boston coming back.......but how did they do it? Boston coach Doc Rivers switched to a much smaller lineup and extended the floor getting in passing lanes and doubling Kobe.........NOT ONLY DID PHIL NOT MAKE ANY ADJUSTMENTS.........HE NEVER EVEN CALLED TIMEOUT AS THE CELTICS CAME ALL THE WAY BACK AND PRETTY MUCH ENDED THAT SERIES BY GOING UP 3-1.
After that game Tex Winter said "I think Phil stayed in the triangle too long"......TEX WINTER SAID THAT!!

You need more?
Last Sunday The Denver Nuggets extended the floor and Doubled Kobe whenever he caught the ball and sometimes would send a third defender at Kobe when he placed the ball on the floor. This game was headed for another blowout with the same strategy as above BUT.........Kobe had a suggestion because Phil was prepared to do nothing again. He suggested Phil put him in the post so he could make all the decisions.......Denver had to pick it's poison and this jumpstarted the Lakers midway through the third quarter.

I think it's less uninspired effort and more confusion that plagues the Lakers. The confusion starts with Phil Jackson and filters down to the players .....none of whom understand what their respective roles are.......AFTER roughly 60 games into the season.
Phil Jackson is now saying that Pau is "weak and sickly".......Duh......we've know that for quite sometime now Phil.................but Phil was part of the problem and became a Gasol enabler after that Memphis game suggesting that Kobe's shot attempts were more about passing Jerry West's all-time scoring record instead of "moving the ball" and Gasol getting "more touches"........Derek Fisher even chimed in about more balance and shot distribution as Phil created an environment for dissension and scapegoating instead of personal responsibility.

Hey Phil, Derek, and Pau..........is that the problem now? NO! Maybe you three have been the problem all along........it's at least worth examining.
Posted by: pfunk36 | March 06, 2010 at 10:47 AM
===================
Pfunk36,
We have agreed pretty much on our calling out PJ and his coaching and/or lack of coaching.
This year I have seen him call timeouts more than in any other season but his rotations and adjustments are still a headache.
He should utilize the bench more and quit over playing starters when they should be rested to be the freshest in the playoffs.
PJ has always denigrated his players in the press and is going back to destroying players confidence with his mind games.
He needs to point his finger at himself and not the players. After all it is his job to have the players prepared to play their best and not denigrate them.
I also remember the Suns series leading 3-1 and losing series 4-3. This was with a young AB on bench whose play was forcing Suns to double team him and Drew was dominating Amare. But PJ refused to exploit that mismatch and stayed with his project Kwame.
Now some bloggers calling Drew Jim Buss’s project. Who would you rather have Kwame or Drew?
I agree with you that the problem starts with PJ.

THE ZEN MASTER…
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
JON… We are kindred souls in many ways. Thanks for sharing the story about Father Mike. The lesson the story so aptly highlights is the lasting value of figuring things out yourself versus having them crammed down your throat and that is the core truth behind the teaching philosophy that drives Phil Jackson’s coaching.
-
Phil knows and understands that knowledge gained through self-discovery provides a more permanent basis for changed behavior and improved performance than knowledge gained through mere instruction or order. That’s why Phil wants his players to figure things out for themselves rather than telling them what to do.
-
As you so aptly stated in relating your story, Phil “wants people to own their own experience and the lessons it teaches and, thus, gain the full depth of the benefits of that experience.” The key benefits of Phil’s philosophy are exemplified in the great performances of his players in the playoffs, when the pressure is the greatest.
-
I’ve often used the analogy that you need to view Phil Jackson’s coaching strategy and philosophy with a telescope rather than a microscope. The goal is always to have the team performing at its utmost as it heads into the playoffs. The only function of the regular season is to get the team peaking as the playoffs near.
-
That’s why none of the current turmoil has caused me to lose faith in this Lakers team or confidence that we will be playing our best as we head into the playoffs. The Chicken Littles and weak-hearted fair weather fans bailing out on this team need to remember that Phil has been here 10 times before. This year will be #11.
-
Edwin is right that there is a little troll in every Lakers fan. We all have been critical at times of how our team has played. But the difference between a good fan and a poor fan in my mind is that the good fan continues to trust and believe in his team even when times get tough. They don’t bail out and become player haters.
-
There are also a few Lakers fans on this blog who think anything goes in their quest for personal recognition. Their real motive for posting on the blog has little to do with any form of fandom. You can recognize these “fans” by the unbridled glee in their posts when we lose or play poorly. They would rather be right than win.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
TOM

Kobe's defensive effort is non-existant.
He allowed Richardson to get off for 25 in Miami as just waved a hand at him
from 10 feet.
Terrible D by NoDKobe!

Psycorp,

The pick n' roll is a play whereas the Triangle is a system. They're two different things. No team outside of the Hornets with CP3 runs the pick n' roll on every play. But every system, even the Triangle, incorporates the pick n' roll to some extent.

To suggest that the Triangle is to blame for our offensive woes is incredibly shortsighted. If the system you've implemented has gotten you 10 championships, the first place you should look at if there are problems are the people running it. It's the players who aren't reading and reacting properly when the defense overplays the passing lanes.

I’ve often used the analogy that you need to view Phil Jackson’s coaching strategy and philosophy with a telescope rather than a microscope. The goal is always to have the team performing at its utmost as it heads into the playoffs. The only function of the regular season is to get the team peaking as the playoffs near.

TOM

Posted by: LakerTom | March 06, 2010 at 02:33 PM

---
LT,

In the last 4 games, Derek is hitting 0.500 (8 of 16) from the 3-pt area and Jordan is hitting 0.538 (7 of 13). It looks like the two PG's are starting to peak at the right time. We'll be fine...

Kobey is causing the Lakers to struggle because he is taking too many shots. Kobey is asking his team mates to step up and they have but Kobey needs to take better percent shots.Kobey needs to hit 16 out of 22 shots instead of 11 out of 23 shots, he also needs to rebound more. If the Lakers don't win a championship it won't be because of his team mates effort, it will be that Kobey is frustrating his team mates and they won't say anything about it because they know Kobey.

KB Blitz,

In judging Triangle vs. Pick n Roll you shouldn't forget that the Triangle has had the overwhelming advantage that it has been ran by the best basketball players on the planet and in the history of the NBA. Heck, I can probably invent an offense based on H.O.R.S.E and still achieve better result than the PnR if I had Jordan, Pippens, Shaq, Kobe etc... for my players.

That's exactly what has been deceiving people into believing that the Triangle is somehow a Magical Mystical Invincible offensive system that can turn otherwise mediocre players in a mediocre team into world beater and champion. The plain truth is that regardless of what they have been running, in the end it was always a matter of Jordan/Shaq/Kobe (pick your NBA All-Time Best HOFs) going 1-on-1 to destroy some hapless defender. ALWAYS. Turning the game into a 1-on-1 match between a HOF Top-25-Best-Ever NBA against a single hapless defender is not only a no-contest it's also a no-brainer.

Now as for the "roaming Kobe", I say it behooves the coach to control it/him. If Quentin Richardson got red hot and bombed trey after trey with his eyes closed while Kobe roamed then maybe coach should have realized it soon and changed strategy instead, putting Kobe inside Quentin's underwear every single second he's on the floor to cool him down.

I just don't get it. If people thinks Kobe shoots too much then why not sit him down. If people thinks Kobe does not pass enough then why not sit him down. If Kobe's roaming is hurting team then why not tell him NOT to roam. Isn't that a coach is paid for to do? to control a player if what he was doing is wrong? OTH can we assume that since Kobe was doing all this, he was doing it with the full permission and approval of his coach?

Reese,

Please don't be blinded by the 9 bling-bling like many others. Just ask yourself the following:

How many championship could Phil's coaching in general or his Triangle specifically would have brought if there wasn't a Jordan/Kobe to make all those unbelievable, circus act, gravity defying, ridiculous, humanly-impossible shots OR if there wasn't a freak-of-nature of a beast named Shaq that was unstoppable because he could simply bulldoze through any human obstacle at will?

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Logic dictates that if the Triangle is such a Magical Unstoppable system then why isn't it copied and multiplied like rabbits? Plain and simple, knowledgeable insiders such as basketball coaches, pundits and experts KNEW that there was no way it was going to work without a Jordan/Shaq/Kobe on their team.

The plain truth is that when you have one of these "greatest" on your team, the surprise would be NOT to win championships with them.

Good that they talk among themselves...for current issues...
The will to play is poor...
if Pau Gasol still play like this...we must call him Soft Gasol or Poor Gasol...

First of all, let them beat Magic first...
Go and go...Great Lakers

Nop BKK 10122

PsyCorp,

It's 10 rings, not 9.

If you really think that Kobe is the only way that Phil got those last 4 rings, then I suggest you look up two numbers:

1) Laker record in games without Kobe Bryant during the Shaq era (to save you time, it's somewhere around 77%. Their record in games without Shaq during that same time frame, by comparison, is close to 50%).

2) Bryant's performance in NBA Finals games during the Shaq era (to save you time, there's a reason why Kobe wasn't even remotely considered for Finals MVP any of those years, and I don't believe he got more regular season MVP votes than Shaq any of those years either).

even be mistyped*

Tom L.
Don't agree with you at all. without Kobe this team is nothing. it is worse than the current Huston team/

Game notes...

Pregame:

The second of a three game road trip for the Lakers after losing in Miami to drop their record to 46-16. They go into Charlotte to finish off a back to back and attempt to get back to their winning ways. The Bobcats are 28-31 and fighting to stay alive in the Eastern Conference playoff hunt. They’ve got Larry Brown directing them and have given the Lakers fits the last few years. All signs point to a difficult game...

NBALP Friday evening game in Charlotte: Steve Martin on play-by-play with Dell Curry on analysis.

First Quarter:

Lakers starting five - Bynum, Gasol, Artest, Bryant, Fisher
Bobcats starting five - Ratlliff, Diaw, Wallace, Jackson, Felton

12:00 - Bynum tips the ball and the Lakers control it, giving them possession to start the first and fourth quarters.

Lowlights: Pau gets a turnover on an errant pass into the lane from the right wing and it results in a Bobcats fast break and a foul on Ron at the other end. Drew turns the ball over after getting a long offensive rebound above the right elbow and trying and failing to thread the needle to Ron on the left block.

10:31 - The Lakers score their first points on their third offensive possession of the game on Kobe’s left corner jumper off an assist from Pau just above the FT line. Lakers lead 2-1.

Highlights: Pau puts down a dunk from the left block off an assist from Ron at the elbow. Drew denies Diaw’s layup on the right block after he gets around Pau. Pau gets an and-one with a left-handed jump hook in the lane and a FT off of a foul on Wallace after an entry pass on the right mid-post by Fish on the wing. Ron steals a pass at the left defensive elbow and dribbles down for a layup around Diaw. Drew beats the defense down the floor and takes a pass from Kobe, gets fouled in the act of shooting under the basket and makes both FTs. Drew gets an and-one from the left block as he draws a foul on Chandler, who just came into the game replacing Ratliff who already has two personals, and makes the FT after a layup off of an assist from Ron spinning into the lane from the right post. Drew picks off a pass headed for the defensive left block, comes back down and receives an entry pass in the middle of the lane from Kobe, misses a straight away jumper but gets a dunk on the put-back from the right block. The Lakers are outrebounding the Bobcats 8-3.

Lowlight: Jackson scores an and-on after losing Kobe on a pick and roll at the left point and going through both Drew and Pau, who picked up the foul, down on the block and making both a reverse layup and the FT.

Drew’s line: 7 points, 4 rebounds and 1 steal.
Pau’s line: 7 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist.
Kobe’s line: 4 points.
Rons’s line: 2 points, 1 assist and 1 steal.

05:14 - Timeout after Fisher fouls Felton in the lane on a break after Kobe turned the ball over on the other end with a bad pass. Lakers lead 20-15 after Felton makes both FTs.

Lowlights: Fish misses a three from the left point and Drew tips the rebound from underneath to Kobe on the left block but his short jumper is blocked out of bounds from behind by Jackson and the Lakers end up losing the possession on a missed right elbow jumper by Pau after the inbounds. Ron swipes a defensive rebound away from Diaw and dribbles down to the offensive left point from where he drops in a beautiful post entry pass to Pau, who proceeds to blow an uncontested dunk from the left block and the rebound starts a Bobcat’s break that ends with Felton going around Fish down the right post for a layup. Lakers have missed 9 of their last 10 FGs.

02:57 - Timeout on the floor after Jackson gets a fast break layup cutting through the right block, after Fish misses an open jumper in the lane at the other end, to complete an 8-0 run. Lakers trail 21-20.

Substitutions: Odom replaces Gasol and Farmar comes in for Fisher out of the timeout.

Highlights: LO hits a fall away from the left mid-post on his first possession on the floor. Jordan hits a three from the right point off an assist from Ron on the inbounds pass from the baseline.

Lowlights: LO loses Thomas on defense and he hits a wide open twelve foot jumper from the left baseline and then blocks LO’s layup attempt from the right block out of bounds.

01:17 - Brown replaces Bryant in between a pair of FTs by Drew after he gets fouled on a put-back attempt off of a missed three from the left corner by Ron. Drew makes 1-2 FTs and the Lakers lead 26-23.

00:00.0 - No one can score in the last minute plus and Wallace misses a jumper from the left baseline as time expires in the quarter with the Lakers leading 26-23. The Lakers have missed 11 of their last 13 FGs.

Drew’s line: 8 points and 6 rebounds.

Second Quarter:

Lakers lineup - Gasol, Odom, Bryant, Brown, Farmar
Bobcats lineup - Thomas, Diaw, Wallace, Jackson, Augustin

Lowlights: Lakers turn the ball over two of their first three possessions in the quarter, Gasol and Brown being the responsible parties, but luckily the Bobcats have turned it over a couple of times themselves.

09:48 - Lakers first points of the quarter by Jordan with an and-one as Pau finds him from the right block, cutting down the lane and laying it in as he is fouled and makes the FT. Lakers lead 29-28.

Lowlights: Kobe gambles on defense and tries to steal the ball by going around Jackson on the pick and roll but fails, leading to a layup by Jackson as he weaves around Pau and goes straight down the lane to the hoop. Bobcats get a couple of fast break baskets on consecutive possessions to complete an 11-3 run, on 4-5 FGs this quarter, while the Lakers have 4 turnovers on 8 possessions with 3 resulting from Bobcats steals and have shot 1-5 FGs.

08:28 - Timeout as LO fumbles the ball on the left post and is guilty of passing to himself as he picks it back up for a turnover. Lakers trail 34-29.

Lowlight: Lakers have 8 turnovers so far in the game and have made only 12 FGs, while the Bobcats have scored 7 points off of those turnovers.

Jordan’s line: 7 points on 2-2 FGs.

06:21 - Timeout as the Bobcats get a long offensive rebound and decide to talk it over, with the Lakers trailing 34-32.

Substitutions: Bynum in for Odom, Artest in for Brown and Fisher in for Farmar out of the timeout.

Highlights:

Lowlights: Lakers now have 8 turnovers in the second quarter alone as they continue their poor ball handling.

04:30 - PJ takes a timeout after a Bobcat turnover as the Lakers have had 3 turnovers on 4 possessions in the last two minutes. Lakers trail 38-32.

Lowlights: Kobe takes the ball all the way down the court and turns it over on the right baseline as it is swiped out of his hands out of bounds coming out of the timeout, that’s 9 turnovers in 16 possessions in the quarter.

04:01 - Powell in for Bynum after he picks up his third foul when Kobe blows his defensive assignment on Wallace and allows him to get the ball on the right baseline and penetrate to the block. Lakers trail 39-32 after Wallace makes 1-2 FTs.

03:31 - Bobcats call a twenty second timeout after Fish steals the ball from Felton out on the point and feeds Kobe for a fast break layup. Lakers trail 39-36.

Lowlight: No Laker other than Kobe has taken a shot in the last nine offensive possessions and Kobe has gone 1-4 FGs and 3-4 FTs durning that span.

02:24 - Farmar comes in for Fish, as he picks up his third foul on Wallace on the left mid-post on a clear mismatch. Lakers trail 43-37 as Wallace makes both FTs.

Highlights: Kobe makes a hesitating, juking fall away jumper from the left elbow. Kobe continues to dominate the ball and as he is pressured he goes up with a leaner from the right elbow that he throws off the glass to himself and makes the put back from just in front of the rim. A Laker break ends with Gasol dunking a put back, as both he and Farmar missed from the lane after a steal in the frontcourt and a feed back down inside to Jordan from Ron.

Lowlight: Another turnover from the perimeter by Kobe leads to a Bobcat fast break layup.

00:00.0 - The half comes to an end as the Lakers pass the ball around the perimeter without getting a shot off as the buzzer sounds on a 49-43 Laker deficit, that by all rights should be much larger as they played some of their worst basketball of the year in the second quarter of this game. They lost the period 26-17.

Halftime:

Nothing good to say here...I’m still trying to make sense of it all and hoping the Lakers got this all out of there system in the second quarter.

Drew’s line: 8 points and 7 rebounds in just over 14 minutes.

Third Quarter:

Lakers lineup - Bynum, Gasol, Artest, Bryant, Fisher
Bobcats lineup - Ratlliff, Diaw, Wallace, Jackson, Felton

Lowlights: Diaw makes a fifteen foot jumper from the right baseline with no Laker within ten feet of him. The Lakers have come out of the second half just like they finished the first, as Ron takes the ball on the pick and roll from Drew off the right elbow and dribbles out to the wing as he is doubled, somehow fails to see Drew roll to the basket with no one on him and instead throws a bad pass out towards Pau on the left point, which bounces off his kneecap and rolls out of bounds for another Laker turnover. They look like a team in a coma right now, as Wallace makes a three from the left wing and then Jackson steals a bad pass from Pau on the perimeter and takes in all the way down to the basket for an uncontested dunk. On the next offensive possession Pau tries to drive down the right wing but Jackson knocks the ball off of his leg out of bounds for yet another turnover, and this is now getting completely ridiculous. Wallace hits a three from the right point as the shot clock expires after a kick out from Felton who was flying out of bounds, and out of control, under the basket.

08:39 - Lakers score their first points of the quarter as Drew gets fouled under the basket on a put-back off his own inexplicable miss from point-blank range. Lakers trail 59-44 as Drew makes 1-2 FTs.

Highlight: Fish hits a three from the right point.

Lowlights: Kobe’s missed 6 of his last 8 FGs. Drew’s whistled for offensive three seconds as Ron fakes a three and drives the ball towards the point instead, the Lakers sixteenth turnover of the game and we’re still not half way through the third quarter.

Kobe’s line: 15 points on 5-14 FGs and 3 rebounds.

05:25 - Timeout as Pau fouls Diaw as he receives an entry pass in the middle of the paint. Lakers trail 63-49 and their gonna have to start playing some very serious defense to get back into this one.

Highlights: Lakers force a shot clock violation on the Bobcats coming out of the timeout.

05:07 - Timeout as Kobe seems to have aggravated his finger injury after making a shot in the lane on the previous possession and he ricochets the ball back to Ron with his left hand in the back court and walks back down wincing in pain as PJ stops play with a twenty, as if things couldn’t get any worse! Lakers trail 63-51.

Highlight: Kobe comes back out after the timeout and makes a shot in the lane as he appears to be alright after a very short recovery period.

04:18 - Farmar replaces Fisher as Bynum goes to the line after being fouled in the act of shooting on the left block by Ratliff. Drew makes 1-2 FTs giving the Lakers a 10-2 run, but they still trail by nine, 64-54.

Highlights: Drew hits a fifteen foot jumper from the right wing off a kick-out from Farmar on the post, it’s the first outside shot that Bynum has made in a long, long time, meaning many games!

Lowlights: Wallace hits a three from the right corner after Kobe leaves him to wander out towards the point.

02:39 - Timeout as Drew is fouled going to the hoop by Ratliff as Pau hits him cutting down the lane after getting an offensive rebound on the right baseline. Lakers are trying to claw their way back into this one, but this game is giving ugly a bad name right now and the Lakers still trail 68-58 after Drew makes both FTs after the teams come back out on the floor.

Substitution: Odom in for Gasol and Brown replaces Bryant out of the timeout.

Highlight: Lakers lead the Bobcats 15-5 in offensive rebounds, which is probably one of the few things that has kept the game reasonably close up to this point.

Lowlight: Jackson drills a three from the left point after losing Shannon cutting through traffic in the lane. Lakers are shooting 4-16 FGs including 1-6 on threes with 6 turnovers in the third quarter so far, while the Bobcats are shooting 9-15 FGs including 4-4 threes.

02:00 - Bobcats take a twenty after LO misses both FTs after getting fouled on a put-back attempt, for an unofficial turnover, and then Ron gets called for a foul attempting to rebound the second miss. Lakers trail 71-58.

Substitutions: Gasol in for Bynum coming out of the timeout.

Lowlights: Henderson gets a put-back on the left block off of miss by Wallace from the right wing. The Bobcats play-by-play guy actually said this, “Pau Gasol, I’ve never been a big fan of his game and didn’t Jerry West say that he hasn’t improved a bit since he came over from Memphis?” And that’s not Steve Martin the comedian either, who I will now never be a big fan of, nor of his “game”! WTF?

01:17 - Morrison comes in for Artest in between FTs as Chandler makes both and the Lakers trail 74-58. This is only Ammo’s second appearance in the last six games.

Highlights: Jordan hits a deep three from the left point. A give and go between LO and Pau ends up with a dunk by LO cutting down the lane off of a nice bounce pass from the right wing by Pau.

00:00.0 - LO gets a defensive rebound and dribbles out into the open court but can’t get a shot off before the buzzer to end the quarter as the Lakers trail 75-63.

Drew’s line: 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Fourth Quarter:

Lakers lineup - Gasol, Odom, Bryant, Brown, Farmar
Bobcats lineup - Chandler, Thomas, Wallace, Jackson, Felton

11:43 - Lakers first points of the quarter as Kobe dribbles from the left wing to the FT line and hits a jumper. Lakers trail 75-63.

Lowlights: Felton lobs to Chandler for a dunk. Jackson steals LO’s pass at midcourt and takes it back down for an uncontested dunk, then Thomas blocks Jordan’s reverse layup at the other end. Augistin hits a three from the left corner.

08:30 - Timeout after a offensive three second violation on the Bobcats. Lakers trail 84-69.

Interesting factoids: Going into this game the Lakers had taken 113 more FTs than their opponents, but the Bobcats had taken 309 more. The Lakers are 30-3 when Farmar scores 10+ points, which is soon to be 30-4 it appears.

HIghlight: LO and Shannon lay out Wallace on a hard foul as he drives to the hoop on a break, LO gets tagged with the personal.

Lowlights: Augustin hits an uncontested three from the right wing.

LO’s line: 8 points on 3-5 FGs and 5 rebounds.
Jordan’s line: 12 points on 4-5 FGs and 2-3 FTs.

06:17 - Timeout called on a loose ball foul on Pau, after Shannon steals a lob under the basket on the defensive end and takes it all the way back down and misses the layup. The Bobcats wannbe-comedian Steve Martin says that Pau has been complaining all night on every call and implied that this one was just some pay-back by the refs. The guy’s an absolute freakin’ asshole of an announcer and I think he’s been secretly posting comments on the Lakers blog recently... Lakers trail 89-73.

Highlight: Pau gets a dunk when Kobe hits him from the right wing cutting straight down the lane. Shannon strips Augustin on the defensive point and takes the ball all the way back down for an uncontested running dunk.

Lowlights: Thomas gets a two-handed dunk from the right block off of penetration and a dish by Augustin and the Bobcats announcers guffaw loudly. Kobe fouls Augustin as he crosses midcourt and this time Martin and Curry say, “[Kobe’s] fouled everyone here in the lineup, they’re finally callin’ that” and, “Yup, you’re exactly right there Steven” then, “forearm shivers, elbows, slaps to the head, pull on the waist”, “yeah”, it’s almost too disgusting to even listen to any further and now I’m pretty positive they’ve both been posting on the Lakers blog lately. Wallace misses a breakaway dunk after a turnover by LO on the offensive end and Martin says, “they just wanted to take some more time off the clock” as the Bobcats grab the defensive rebound, this guy has no shame, or decency. It turns out that Dell Curry, the Bobcats color guy, is the Warriors’ Stephen Curry’s dad, which makes me hate him too now.

02:15 - Timeout as Kobe is fouled shooting a three by Wallace. Lakers trail 95-80 as Kobe hits all three FTs.

Substitutions: Mbenga in for Gasol, Powell in for Odom and Morrison in for Farmar coming out of the timeout.

02:09 - Farmar replaces Bryant as Kobe commits a foul on Felton as he crosses midcourt. Lakers trail 96-80 as Felton makes 1-2 FTs.

00:00.0 - The Bobcats run out the last 20 seconds of the game without taking a shot and the Lakers lose 98-83.

Postgame:

This one was about as forgettable as they come. It’s what we call double-coyote ugly in AZ, which is when you chew off your remaining arm after you make your escape by chewing off the first, just in case she comes around looking for a one-armed man! An absolutely horrid performance by the Lakers and I can’t help but think that they might well have lost at home to the Nets playing like they did tonight. The Bobcats evened the season series with the Lakers with this win and have now beaten them seven of the last nine times they’ve met. There’s some kind of nasty voodoo goin’ on here! If the true test of a team’s character is how they respond to a loss like this, then we’ll get a good preview of the playoffs when the Lakers face Orlando next, on Sunday.

The Lakers beat the Bobcats on the boards, 51-49 and 15-8 on the offensive end, and that’s probably the only good thing you can say about their performance. They had 20 turnovers, the standard for defining ball-handling incompetence. They shot 36% FGs including 17% from three, that’s 3-18, and allowed Charlotte to post outstanding numbers, 51% FGs and 50% on threes. They had 8 shots blocked and only rejected 3 on the defensive end. However, the stats don’t even begin to reflect how poorly they played, it was anti-synergy and almost everyone contributed to this disastrous result, except perhaps the end of the bench crew who got in a few minutes of mop-up duty. Talk about cleanin’ out some dirty toilets...

Jordan’s line: 12 points on 4-6 FGs including 2-3 from three.
Drew’s line: 14 points on 3-9 FGs and 8-11 FTs, 10 rebounds (7 offensive) and 3 steals in 24+ minutes.
Kobe’s line: 26 points on 9-21 FGs including 0-4 from three and 8-9 FTs.
Pau’s line: 11 points on 5-14 FGs and 2-4 FTs, 13 rebounds (5 offensive) and had 5 of his shots blocked.
LO’s line: 8 points and 6 rebounds and 4 turnovers.
Ron’s line: 2 points on 1-9 FGs including 0-4 from three and 4 assists.

This is the perfect time for the team to do some serious introspection, soul-searching and self-motivating. Six weeks from now, not so much. Please, all you Nervous Nellys, relax and pick out your spot on Figueroa.

John K...I have a sister who lives in Gainseville, Fl, and I would agree the place is strange. For one thing, who expects to be surrounded by a massive pine forest there.

hobbit......you are right, kobe's roving defense is not effective fro this team....... he winds up guarding no one.