Among the highlights of my breakdown on the Lakers' 96-71 victory Tuesday over the Utah Jazz:

• It's hard to gauge to what degree the Lakers' win means. Utah was playing its first regular-season game -- with new personnel -- and simply isn't a good team.
• The Lakers' win at least boosts their confidence, allowing them to improve using Mike Brown's scheme.
• Pau Gasol played much more aggressively against Utah than in his previous two games. That aggressiveness was a big factor in the Lakers' success.
• No one at Staples Center thought Metta World Peace could throw down a one-handed dunk. It remains unclear how much he can maintain double-digit efforts on consecutive nights. But he appears to be fitting in as a bench leader much easier than he did under the triangle offense.

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Things to take away from Lakers' 96-71 victory over Utah Jazz

-- Mark Medina

E-mail the Lakers blog at mgmedin@gmail.com