Lakers.com BasketBlog

on January 13, 2010

. Closed

Andrew Bynum Dallas CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT THE LAKERS’ GAMEDAY PAGE
We took a look at the Lakers - Mavs contest in Dallas while it was happening, entering a thought or three each quarter as the Lakers looked to snap a four game road losing streak.

Inactives
Lakers: Pau Gasol
Mavericks: Eduardo Najera, Matt Carroll

Starters
Lakers: Fisher, Bryant, Artest, Odom* and Bynum
Mavs: Jason Kidd, Josh Howard, Shawn Marion, Dirk Nowitzki, Erick Dampier
*Odom continued to start in place of Pau Gasol, who missed his sixth straight game with a strained left hamstring.

Pregame Stories
Three options for you today (click to open): 1) Kobe update; 2) Lamar Odom on guarding Dirk Nowitzki; 3) Luke Walton back update.

59271648 First Quarter
8:43 Looking much like the Lakers team that played effectively in the third quarter against San Antonio without Kobe taking a shot, L.A. got seven points from Andrew Bynum, three from Ron Artest and two each from Lamar Odom and Derek Fisher to take a 14-7 lead.

3:32 Bynum continued a terrific offensive quarter with a step-through jam in traffic to get to a game-high 14 points before leaving with two personal fouls. He found more success going against Erick Dampier than he had Tim Duncan the night before, making all five of his field goal attempts. We should note that Bynum only late last week began feeling good after battling an upper respiratory ailment, in addition to a bit of leg pain that was limiting his explosiveness. Not even a trace of either in the last three games.

1:15 Bryant almost reluctantly took his first field goal attempt when the Mavs left him wide open from three, and he was well short. It was his only attempt of the quarter, and he went to the bench ala Steve Nash in lying down flat along the baseline. But his teammates allowed the Lakers a 27-24 lead after one thanks to a solid all-around effort. Random note: the Mavs had really good Chinese food in the media room, though one’s palate was expecting Mexican food. It took a while to get over mentally.

Second Quarter
8:23 L.A.’s second unit looked like the exact opposite of Arizona and Green Bay’s respective offenses last weekend in failing to score during the quarter’s first two minutes plus the final two of the previous quarter, but then turned into Kurt Warner (or Aaron Rodgers) as Odom hit two free throws and Shannon Brown scored back-to-back buckets, putting the Lakers back on top 33-29.

5:11 Luke Walton sure didn’t look like a guy who’d missed 27 straight games, continuing his solid six fourth quarter minute with a nice stretch to open the second, setting up two Lakers hoops with his passing and hitting a leaner in the paint to help L.A. open a 39-34 lead.

1:01 With Bryant still lying on the baseline, Sasha Vujacic entered and directly helped L.A. out of a mini offensive slump, first finding Odom cutting to the hook for a layup after drawing the defense, and then getting two free throws to go after drawing a bump in traffic, halting a 9-0 Dallas run to give L.A. a 46-45 lead. Artest then closed a solid personal half by getting Dirk to foul him with 00.2 seconds left beyond the three-point line, making all three to give the Lakers a four-point edge at the half despite no points from Kobe. Bynum also managed to hit two more shots to go 7-of-7, which meant he’d literally not missed a shot against Dallas in a game and a half (he went 8-of-8 when they met in early January).

Jordan Farmar Third Quarter
6:35 Artest continued an effective offensive game by hitting a triple that got him to 14 points, putting the Lakers up by two after Dallas had drained 6-of-8 to open the quarter. Even battling injuries, Artest has the capability to step up his offense if needed.

5:57 So, last night in San Antonio, a fan threw up all over the place after swallowing a bunch of jalapeno’s during a contest. As it turned out, Dallas did the same contest, but thankfully we had no barf in this one. No word on how this will affect the game’s outcome.

0:00.9 Jordan Farmar nailed a deep three-pointer from the top of the key to send the Lakers into the fourth up five thanks to a 7-0 run to close the third. Bynum got to a 21 and 10 double-double, in addition to some solid paint defense that largely kept Dallas out of the lane. Bryant managed eight points on 4-of-6 shooting to get himself into the action.

Fourth Quarter
12:00 As expected, Bryant stayed on the floor without a rest to start the fourth. The key for stiff backs is to keep them warm, which Phil Jackson obviously knew in keeping Bryant out of the second quarter so that he could play the entire second half.

5:55 For the second time on the evening, the Mavs grabbed two long rebounds on the same possession and scored on the third attempt, but Farmar hit a pull-up jumper at the other end to keep L.A.’s lead at six points. It was also a strong stretch from Walton, whose two assists gave him four off the bench in 14 minutes.

0:28.0 A crazy stretch in which Dallas erased a 5-point lead with two Dirk jumpers concluded with Bryant nailing a 19-foot jumper, just a possession after he’d air balled a jumper from the other side of the floor. The Mavs then ran a nice play to get Dampier what looked to be an open layup, but Bryant slid in and fouled him hard. Damp, who’s only a 58 percent free throw shooter, missed both to give L.A. possession.

0:05.6 After Bynum made 1-of-2 free throws, the Mavs had a chance to tie with a Josh Howard corner three, but he missed and Farmar corralled the rebound. Jordan, a 76.9 percent free throw shooter, nailed both to send the Lakers to their most impressive victory of the season. No Pau Gasol, a hurt Kobe … but they banded together and got the job done.

L.A.’s back in action against the Clippers on Friday. Until then, your numbers:

Brown Kidd POSTGAME NUMBERS
3 Lakers frontcourt players who finished with a double-double (that would be all of them). Andrew Bynum was terrific with 22 points and 11 rebounds, Lamar Odom was solid with 18, 14 and four assists, while Ron Artest battled injuries to post 16 points and 11 rebounds.

7 Turnovers for the Mavs; L.A. had to work for nearly all of its points.

10 Points for Kobe Bryant on 5-of-11 shooting, making L.A.’s victory that much more impressive. Of course, the team’s biggest shot was Bryant’s 19-foot jumper to break a 95-all tie with 28.9 seconds remaining.

31 Bench points for the Lakers in an impressive all-around effort, led by 12 from Jordan Farmar, and helped by four assists in only 14 minutes from Luke Walton.

48.8 L.A.’s solid shooting performance from the field, led by Bynum’s 8-of-11.

20,000 Point mark reached by Dirk Nowitzki, becoming the 34th player in the history of the league and first European player to get there. He led Dallas with 30 in the contest.

Lakers 85, Spurs 105: Running Diary

Published

on January 12, 2010

. Closed

59264982 CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT THE LAKERS’ GAMEDAY PAGE
We took a look at the Lakers - Spurs contest at the AT&T Center while it was happening, entering a thought or three each quarter as the Lakers looked to snap a three game road losing streak.

Inactives
Lakers: Pau Gasol
Spurs: Matt Bonner, Michael Finley

Starters
Lakers: Fisher, Bryant, Artest, Odom* and Bynum
Spurs: Tony Parker, Keith Bogans, Richard Jefferson, Tim Duncan, DeJuan Blair
*Odom continued to start in place of Pau Gasol, missing his fifth straight game with a strained left hamstring.

Pregame Notes
In a pregame conversation with Stu Lantz, I essentially learned that we can’t learn too much from San Antonio’s early schedule (that make sense? no?). In short, the Spurs have beaten only three +.500 teams in 17 tries, but as Stu explained, we really aren’t sure what that means. Have they been giving their best effort? Gregg Popovich teams generally don’t turn it on until later in the season. Have they been healthy? Ginobili’s still working his way back. Have they played many road games? Not really. Either way, we really don’t know what kind of effort we’ll get from the Spurs in early January. Conclusions and rankings, Lantz said he’d save until the playoffs.

First Quarter
9:21 In Gasol’s absense, Andrew Bynum had put forth three straight double-doubles, and was well on his way to another after making back-to-back buckets inside, both courtesy of nice passes from Lamar Odom. In unrelated news, you gotta appreciate San Antonio’s mascot, which is basically a tall/skinny coyote that started juggling a soccer ball during a time out.

59264986 3:27 Kobe Bryant went back to the splint he’d worn after initially injuring his finger in order to get some more support (i.e. strength), and it certainly appeared to be working early as he made his fourth jumper in six attempts to get to nine points. He did, however, head to the locker room with apparent back spasms before returning shortly (this would become an ongoing issue that kept him out of the fourth quarter).

0:03.8 Antonio McDyess made the fifth straight shot for the Spurs to give San Antonio a 27-23 lead after a quarter. The Lakers did well to match the Spurs’ energy, which was superb from the jump.

Second Quarter
9:34 Bryant found a way to deal with his back initially, canning a turnaround/fadeaway three as the clock expired on one possession before nailing another jumper on the next. His 6-of-8 had produced 14 points. He’s good.

5:45 The Spurs got a terrific boost from their bench both at the end of the first and early in the second, capped by a George Hill steal of Bryant and resulting dunk. That hoop brought San Antonio’s field goal percentage to nearly 60 percent, enabling a 46-34 lead. By the way, did you know that San Antonio is the state’s second largest city, and seventh-largest in the U.S. with 1.3 million people? FYI.

1:56 Tim Duncan is still very, very good. As one of only three 20-10 guys in the NBA, he’s proven his still-elite status throughout the season; in the first half, he nailed 8-of-12 shots despite close defense from Bynum, helping the Spurs take a 53-41 lead into halftime. As a team, San Antonio hit 56 percent of its shots (roughly the percentage of phone calls that pay off for “The Situation”), while the Lakers managed just 44 percent shooting (more like Vinny).

Third Quarter
9:20 The third quarter has generally been kind to the Lakers of late, thanks in part to increased defensive pressure, but the Spurs refused to comply when Parker, Duncan and Jefferson combined to hit five jumpers (three for Parker, and a Jefferson triple) in S.A.’s first six attempts.

59264987 5:03 The Spurs continued to hit everything (8-of-9 to open the quarter), but L.A. was able to cut slightly into what had been a 22-point lead when Bynum scored on three straight trips for the Lakers, the third a thunderous alley-oop dunk from Bryant. Speaking of Kobe … he was clearly smarting from those back spasms, deferring both to Bynum and Artest (10 points in the quarter).

0:38.3 Two free throws from Odom cut 10 points off San Antonio’s 22-point lead, giving L.A. at least a puncher’s chance to come back in the fourth quarter. It’d be tough, however, without Kobe Bryant, whose back kept him from attempting even a single shot after hitting 7-of-10 in the first half, and would keep him on the bench (and in the locker room getting treatment) in the final quarter.

Fourth Quarter
8:25 Phil Jackson picked a rather important juncture to send Luke Walton in for the first time since mid November, the Lakers down just nine points after trailing by 22 in the third, and Walton responded by almost immediately converting a tough jumper in the lane to make it a seven-point game.

5:44 What an impressive stretch Walton turned in, all things considered … after that first jumper, he nailed another and then picked off Duncan’s pass in the lane before feeding Farmar for a fast break layup at the other end, cutting San Antonio’s lead to just six…

4:13 … But it took just 1:31 for the Spurs to roll off six straight points, essentially putting the game back on ice. That Bryant was unable to return due to a back injury was particularly ironic since Walton, whose back had kept him out for more than seven weeks, received many of Bryant’s fourth quarter minutes.

As it turned out, the Spurs wound up running the score back up to a 20-point margin (105-85) to close the game, sending L.A. into the second game of a back-to-back in Dallas with a loss.

Until then, your numbers:

POSTGAME NUMBERS
0 Shots Kobe Bryant took in the second half, succumbing to back spasms that kept him out of the fourth quarter.

3 Injuries suffered by L.A., including Bryant’s back, a strained groin from Sasha Vujacic and a hurt Ron Artest finger. Pau Gasol missed his fifth straight game with a strained hamstring (though he targets Friday’s game against the Clippers for a return), but on the bright side, Luke Walton returned.

6 Minutes of effective action from Walton, who made two shots and grabbed a steal in his first minutes since mid November.

13 Assists for the Lakers on a tough offensive night.

23 Points from Andrew Bynum despite Tim Duncan’s defense throughout the game, in addition to eight rebounds.

57.3 San Antonio’s field goal percentage on the evening, compared to just 44.2 percent from the Lakers.

Lakers 98, Blazers 107: Running Diary

Published

on January 8, 2010

. Closed

100108kobebryant CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT THE LAKERS’ GAMEDAY PAGE
We took a look at the Lakers - Blazers contest at the Rose Garden while it was happening, entering a thought or three each quarter as the Lakers looked to snap an 8-game road losing streak in Portland.

Inactives
Lakers: Luke Walton
Blazers: Travis Outlaw, Greg Oden, Joel Pryzbilla

Starters
Lakers: Fisher, Bryant, Artest, Odom* and Bynum
Blazers: Andre Miller, Brandon Roy, Martell Webster, LaMarcus Aldridge, Juwan Howard
*Odom got the start as Pau Gasol missed his third full game with a strained left hamstring.

Pregame Notes
For all our pregame notes from today, CLICK HERE. The synopsis: Phil Jackson said that his favorite thing about the key to Portland’s team, Brandon Roy, is his composure. Lamar Odom said he’s feeling better from his earlier-week stomach ailment. Jordan Farmar’s looking forward to pushing tempo when he gets into the game (and perhaps more importantly, approved the shirt I bought from Macy’s today after forgetting mine in L.A.).

59244421 First Quarter
7:01 The Blazers used a 7-0 run to jump up 14-6 on the Lakers until Bryant’s 24-foot three sliced through the net. It was Bryant’s first make after three straight misses and an opening conversion as Portland opted not to double-team him on the perimeter. Instead, the Blazers focused on making it tough for Andrew Bynum to catch the ball in the post, a good counter to L.A.’s game plan.

1:45 It was no shock to the Lakers to see Portland open hot from the field, hitting 10-of-17 (62.5 percent) to take a 26-20 lead on Juwan Howard’s tip in. Speaking of Howard … he’s one of three players from the 1994 Draft class still in the league, along with Jason Kidd (pick No. 2) and Grant Hill (No. 3). Howard was drafted fifth.

0:12.9 The Blazers got quite the bench boost from Jerryd Bayless, a former lotter pick who made all four of his attempts for eight points, including the quarter’s final basket that allowed Portland a six-point cushion heading into the second. L.A., however, did well to match Portland’s energy, sticking around despite 60 percent shooting in the quarter from the home team. In other news, there must have been 23 “Beat L.A.!!” chants in the period (not a shocker).

Second Quarter
11:25 On the heels of a 15-point effort off the bench against the Clippers, Shannon Brown nailed back-to-back jumpers to quickly pull L.A. within two. He doesn’t, of course, jump all 44.5 inches of his vertical on his jump shot, but wouldn’t it be cool if he did?

6:21 The Lakers had already committed eight fouls in less than a half of the quarter, sending the Blazers to the line on consecutive fouls far away from the basket. The last two were on Bynum, including his bump when stepping out on a Bayless pick and roll, and then as he tried to get around Jeff Pendergraph for an offensive board. At that point, Portland had taken 15 free throws to three from L.A. in a 43-37 game. In unrelated news, here are a few things Blazers fans like more than Lakers: getting root canal; rubbing salt in open wounds; and paying taxes.*
*Bad example, since there’s no sales tax in Oregon. Whatever.

0:30 Portland’s biggest lead of the half was matched as Howard hit an end-of-shot-clock perimeter jumper that produced a 55-43 edge. The Lakers were struggling to get good shots on offense, as Fisher missed back-to-back open threes (2-for-6 in the half) and Bynum wasn’t able to get the ball in good shooting position. The Blazers had no such trouble, hitting 54 percent of their looks in the half, including 60 percent from three-point land, to take their 12-point lead.

Third Quarter
10:11 The third is generally the quarter in which L.A. makes its defensive push to either put teams away or get back in games, and after two minutes that appeared to be the case once again. Two stops resulted in five points at the other end, quickly cutting Portland’s lead to seven points.

6:01 The defensive activity continued for the next several minutes, as Portland’s lead was cut to just three after Odom’s alley-oop to Bynum. The Lakers hit four threes during that stretch and held the Blazers to 3-of-8 shooting with three turnovers. Meanwhile, Blazers fans continued to express vitriol towards anything purple and gold. Always a good time at the Rose Garden.

1:35 After opening as cold as the weather from the field, Portland made eight straight shots (literally), including seven jumpers, to go up 10 points when L.A. had twice cut the lead to three. A frustrating period for the Lakers, to be sure, who worked hard and played well but simply watched the jumpers rain down against them. It seemed almost appropriate with the rain coming down simultaneously outside the arena.

59244424 Fourth Quarter
11:20 L.A.’s frustration continued right into the fourth, as whistles twice put Portland back on the line, the lead suddenly at a game-high 14 points.

8:53 Bryant went to the bench after missing all three of his attempts from the field, which put him at 9-for-24 in the game. That backed up games of 10-for-30 and 9-of-23, as his finger clearly continues to bug him. In fact, Bryant was seen trying to dribble the basketball (as reported by the OCR’s Kevin Ding) in between plays in hopes of finding some sort of balance for the finger.

3:20 The Lakers didn’t quit, cutting the lead down to 11 when Odom put back a Bryant miss, plus the foul. However, at the other end, the Blazers had continued to find ways to get to the charity stripe, including stepping on someone’s foot (Roy inadvertently stepped on Bynum, and LA.’s center was hit with the personal). At that point, Portland had taken 33 free throws to just eight for the Lakers. L.A. would manage to get as close as six points in the final minute and change before the Blazers put it away.

In summation, the Blazers played consistently hard and well at both ends, while the Lakers were only able to sustain their usual high level of play for the better part of the third quarter and some of the first. It marked the ninth straight loss for L.A. in Portland, albeit losses in the regular season.

The Lakers will look to Sunday to once again stave off a potential three-game losing streak when the Bucks travel to L.A. Until then, your numbers:

POSTGAME NUMBERS
2 Fast break points for the Lakers, who had trouble creating easy baskets throughout the evening.

9 Straight losses for the Lakers in Portland. Just in case you hadn’t heard that.

29 More free throw attempts for Portland than L.A., resulting in 27 more points.

37 Field goal attempts by Kobe Bryant, of which he made 14 (38.8 percent) for 32 points. Brandon Roy matched his point total on only 11 field goal attempts and a slew of free throws. The avulsion fracture on Kobe’s right index finger was clearly bothering him once again.

60 Percent shooting for the Blazers in the first quarter, helping create a lead that they’d never relinquish.

Lakers 103, Suns 118: Running Diary

Published

on December 28, 2009

. Closed

59201661 CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT THE LAKERS’ GAMEDAY PAGE
We took a look at the Lakers - Suns contest in Arizona while it was happening, entering a thought or three each quarter as the Lakers looked for their sixth straight road win.

Inactives
Lakers: Ron Artest
Suns: Taylor Griffin, Jason Collins

Starters
Lakers: Fisher, Bryant, Odom*, Gasol and Bynum
Suns: Steve Nash, Jason Richardson, Grant Hill, Channing Frye, Amar’e Stoudemire.
*Odom started his second straight game in place of Ron Artest, out with a concussion. Phil Jackson said that Artest is still experiencing dizziness, but is hopeful he can return to for Tuesday’s game.

Odom Embraces Planet Orange
About a month ago, the Orange County Register’s Kevin Ding wrote about Lamar Odom’s new penchant for scarfing oranges, an idea first proposed by new teammate and old friend Ron Artest. As it turns out, that habit has gone nowhere, as Odom said before the contest that he still goes through at least two oranges on game days. Last year, he was more likely to be found eating peach candy (or, really, any other sweet/sour candy) before games, but no more. Appropriately, the major marketing slogan in Phoenix is “Planet Orange.”

59201615 First Quarter
12:00 Phoenix still announces Amare Stoudemire’s self-appointed nickname, S.T.A.T. (Standing Tall And Talented), which I always enjoy. Stoudemire’s charged with defending the bigger Andrew Bynum, while Channing Frye must deal with Pau Gasol. It was the Spaniard who struck first, just as he did in Sacramento last night, with a little turnaround jumper.

6:47 Kobe Bryant appeared to take a blow to his finger while slashing to the hoop and drawing a foul, but after a time out sunk both to put L.A. up 12-10 early. The right elbow strain he suffered against Sacramento almost made us forget about the avulsion fracture on his right index finger.

2:58 Bynum scored six straight points as the Lakers took an 18-13 lead, but didn’t get a touch for the next three possessions as Phoenix reeled off a 7-0 run. As if to prove the point, Bynum got the ball on the next Lakers’ possession and promptly drew a foul, sinking both free throws to get to nine points with six rebounds and a block in by far his best stretch of late.

Second Quarter
8:44 A good start to the second quarter it was not, as Phoenix scored the first seven points before pushing their lead to 10 points. L.A. turned the ball over twice after posting not one turnover in the first quarter, including a failed 2-on-1 fastbreak with Jordan Farmar and Shannon Brown miscommunicating (robbing us of a potential Brown dunk, sadly).

5:09 Joining Bryant in the injured finger department was Odom, who sprained the middle and index fingers on his right hand. He is a lefty, we should note, and returned to the game.

0:09.5 With L.A.’s offense stalling at about 30 percent from the field, Bryant went off, making 7-of-his-last-8 shots to get to 17 points, 13 in the quarter, to bring L.A. within six at the half (56-50). In other news, the Human Slinky performed at halftime - always a crowd pleaser.

59201526 Third Quarter
9:58 Like in the second, the Suns came out red hot to start the quarter, nailing 4-of-5 shots (including a pull-up J from Nash) to re-open a 10-point lead. I, however, was still thinking about how the Slinky started its career. What was the motivation?

2:05 Unfortunately for L.A., the Suns didn’t slow down much as the quarter continued, nailing five three pointers to push their lead to 19 points at 87-68. Perhaps “unfortunately” isn’t the operative word, since it was turnovers and missed defensive assignments that led to many of the open looks.

0:28.3 At least one Laker was still playing great. No surprise that it was Bryant, who rolled off L.A.’s final nine points to bring ‘em back within 12 heading into the final quarter.

Fourth Quarter
9:35 Robin Lopez out-maneuvered Gasol for an offensive board and put it back in from the baseline, drawing Phil Jackson’s ire from the bench. It’s not often that Gasol has the team’s worst +/-, yet he did at that point (-16).

6:14 Jared Dudley, a Southern California native (San Diego), hurt the Lakers in the second half with 11 of his 19 points, including three long-distance bombs. The Suns had connected on 11-of-33 triples at that point, not a great percentage, but still damaging to the Lakers.

3:27 Up 16, Phoenix put Nash and Stoudemire back into the contest to seal the deal, and that they did. First, Amare made an and-1 bucket, leading to a pull-up three from Nash on the next possession for the biggest Suns’ lead of the game. Jackson had inserted his subs minutes before the run, content to try things again against Golden State on Tuesday night.

Until then, your numbers:

POSTGAME NUMBERS
(-) 21 Pau Gasol’s plus-minus rating for the night, a shocking number considering his level of skill. The Spaniard managed only 13 points and five rebounds on the evening.

3 Lakers that played over 30 minutes: Kobe Bryant (36:10), Pau Gasol (35:26) and Lamar Odom (barely over, at 30:12).

12 Three-pointers hit by the Suns in 32 attempts, including nine in the second half, to only six makes from the Lakers.

13 In your dubious stat of the night, L.A. managed only 13 assists on 40 field goals, compared with 25 on 43 from Phoenix.

34 Points from Kobe Bryant, who nailed 14-of-26 shots (53.8 percent), and added seven rebounds.

48.9 Field goal percentage for the Suns, quite a departure for the league’s best FG defense in L.A.

Lakers 112, Kings 103: Double OT Diary

Published

on December 26, 2009

. Closed

Kobe Bryant CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT THE LAKERS’ GAMEDAY PAGE
We took a look at a fantastic double overtime Lakers - Kings contest in California’s capital city while it was happening, entering a thought or three each quarter as the Lakers earned their fifth straight road win.

Inactives
Lakers: Ron Artest
Kings: Kevin Martin, Francisco Garcia

Starters
Lakers: Fisher, Bryant, Odom*, Gasol and Bynum
Kings: Beno Udrih, Tyreke Evans, Donte Green, Jason Thompson, Spencer Hawes
*Odom’s started in place of Ron Artest (see below)

Artest Out with Concussion
Much of the pregame discussion centered around the absence of Ron Artest, who fell down the stairs and suffered a concussion and a minor injury to his left elbow. Artest, who did not make the trip to Sacramento with the team, could join the team in Phoenix, though Phil Jackson said that more tests would be needed before his starting small forward could be cleared. Jackson said that the team would most miss Artest’s “physical presence.”

Tyreke Evans First Quarter
11:43 Would Gasol’s tip-in of Bynum’s early miss be a harbinger for increased low post activity tonight? Christmas Day was not a good one for L.A.’s big men, who seemed eager to redeem themselves.

3:45 The bigs were key as the Lakers matched an expectedly energetic burst out of the gates from the Kings, but an 8-0 run capped by Donte Green’s third field goal put the Kings up 23-15. Meanwhile, techno music continued to pound out of the ARCO speakers (the cast of “Jersey Shore” would be right at home).

0:00 An impressive close to the quarter got the Lakers within three (31-28) when Bryant nailed a tough fadeaway jumper at the buzzer. Moments earlier, he had channeled three-peat Kobe in slashing through traffic for a monster jam that had the considerable number of Lakers fans in the building punching each other with joy.

Second Quarter
9:32 Though Odom’s tip in of a Bryant miss brought the Lakers within a single point, it was offensive boards at the other end that were killing them. The Kings had grabbed seven, and also taken advantage of seven Lakers turnovers.

4:44 Playing well in extended time off the bench was Vujacic, who’d earlier nailed his only field goal attempt (a three), then capped a solid stretch of defense with a tough rebound in traffic.

0:00 Doing his Bryant impression, Beno Udrih nailed a buzzer-beating jumper to close a quarter. His came from three, and gave the Kings a 57-55 lead. Bryant led L.A. with 14, while Gasol added 12 on a perfect 5-of-5 from the field.

Kobe Bryant Third Quarter
12:00 Odom couldn’t resist breaking out a lil’ dance under the hoop as Nelly’s “Air Force Ones” came on near the end of halftime (can’t blame him). He was pretty effective in the first half with nine points, three boards, an assist, steal and block in Artest’s absence, so we’ll give it to him.

4:56 Bryant swished his fourth straight jumper, a triple, to get to 25 points (11 in the quarter) in putting L.A. up a point. Incredible that he has so much left in his legs after playing nearly the whole game just yesterday.

0:37.9 What a third quarter from the defending Finals MVP … as the Lakers struggled to get calls at both ends, Bryant pulled up from 25 feet and nailed a three over Udoka. Then he stripped Udoka at the other end and sprinted forward for another dunk. He finished with 16 points in the quarter, tying the game at 78, but appeared to hurt his elbow near the end…

Fourth Quarter
8:33 Bryant indeed strained his right elbow, and appeared to be favoring it heavily when returning to the game after a quick trip to the locker room after the third quarter. Of course, he remained in the game.

4:23 Brown continued a fantastic individual game by nailing a three-pointer to give L.A. a one-point lead, then nailing a 13-foot jumper in the lane, and finally converting a tough and-1 layup after a fullcourt, left-handed pass from Kobe for a five-point lead. That gave Brown eight in the quarter and 14 in the game (three off his season high), to go along with seven rebounds off the bench, a career high in boards.

0:51.7 Did I mention that Bryant couldn’t use his right arm, but remained in the game, not shooting and passing only with his left hand? Unfortunately for L.A., SAC took advantage in stripping him, then blocking his left-handed attempt from the baseline when Gasol dropped the ball off to him late in the shot clock. Udrih then missed a jumper at the other end, and Gasol drew a foul … but missed both free throws. Very surprising from a guy who shoots nearly 90 percent.

0:02.0 Having scored the last six points of the fourth, the Kings cleared out for Evans with plenty of time to try and win the game, but Bryant stripped him (crazy) to force overtime.

Kobe Bryant - Tyreke Evans First Overtime
2:39 Udrih’s jumper was the seventh straight point in overtime and 13th overall for the Kings. Bryant had attempted two jumpers after not even trying in the fourth quarter, but missed both.

1:27 Just when the Lakers looked dead, they went on a 5-0 run capped by Bryant’s steal and dropped-in dunk at the other end to cut Sacramento’s lead to two.

00.4 Amazingly, Gasol tipped in Fisher’s buzzer-beating attempt that had rimmed out, getting his right hand on the ball with literally no time to spare. Bryant had gone for the win with a three at 5.9 seconds remaining, and Fish had grabbed the long rebound.

Double Overtime
2:37 What would you say if I told you that Bryant nailed not one, but two deep three-pointers to put the Lakers up six? Would you believe me? Of course you would, and it happened.

0:40.5 After three straight Kings misses from the perimeter, Fisher drew the foul and hit both free throws, the game all but over as the Kings fans looked on in shock. L.A.’s bench players were still marveling at Bryant’s back-to-back triples. Smiles, laughter, impersonations, etc… The game ended moments later, an 11-2 margin in the second OT sealing the deal in style. What a game.

Pau Gasol, Josh Powell POSTGAME NUMBERS
0 Points for the Lakers from the 3:35 mark of the fourth quarter until Gasol finally hit a free throw at the 2:27 mark of overtime after missing the first of two.

7 Rebounds off the bench for Shannon Brown, a career high. Brown also contributed eight big fourth quarter points, and was joined by Sasha Vujacic in the “good-game-off-the-pine” group.

11 Blocks from L.A.’s superb at-rim defense, including a season-high-tying six from Pau Gasol, plus two each from Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom.

26 Combined rebounds from Lamar Odom (15) and Pau Gasol (11).

30 Points through three quarters for Kobe Bryant, before his strained right elbow kept him scoring until the OT was nearly over. His back-to-back threes in double OT got him to 38 points on 16-of-30 shooting.

Lakers 93, Pistons 81: Running Diary

Published

on December 20, 2009

. Closed

59182970 CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT THE LAKERS’ GAMEDAY PAGE
We took a look at the Lakers - Pistons contest in Detroit while it was happening, entering a thought or three each quarter as the Lakers looked for their fourth straight road win.

Inactives
Lakers: Luke Walton (17th straight game)
Pistons: Ben Gordon, Richard Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince

Starters
Lakers: Fisher, Bryant, Artest, Gasol and Bynum
Pistons: Rodney Stucky, Chucky Atkins, Jonas Jerebko, Jason Maxiell and Ben Wallace

Phil Jackson Pregame
No need to make notes. CLICK HERE, and you can read Phil’s entire pregame presser.

First Quarter
11:45 Of interest in Jackson’s pregame presser was a quick line about Bryant’s finger, which he said hurt his star more in last night’s game than it did two games ago. In essence, any kind of contact can make Kobe’s finger feel like yours would if you stuck it in hot soup (too random?) … but his opening jumper, from 20 feet, swished through the net.

59183029 6:08 After a slow start offensively (we’ll chalk it up to the 4 a.m. hotel arrival), L.A. reeled off seven straight points when Artest hit a three-pointer as Ben Wallace refused to close out on the shot, and Gasol hit 1-of-2 free throws courtesy of Bryant’s trailing pass out of a fastbreak to make it 11-9 for the road team. In unrelated news, the Pistons PA announcer remains, by far, the loudest PA guy in the NBA (FYI).

3:49 Lamar Odom came off the bench and promptly committed two personal fouls in 49 seconds, but to be fair, he’d done some good work in the locker room before the game, singing some Bone Thugs & Harmony songs in hope of boosting his squad’s energy. Luke Walton then confirmed that Odom is the best locker room guy he’s ever been around. The quarter ended with Jordan Farmar’s step-back 3 over Villanueva, which put the Lakers up 31-19 after one thanks in part to seven Pistons turnovers, including three Artest steals.

Second Quarter
8:28 It was a better Bynum in Detroit, punctuated early on by a fierce put-back slam of Shannon Brown’s miss, then a big swat of Will Bynum at the other end. Bynum had made all four of his field goal attempts for 10 points, with two rebounds, an assist and two blocks as the Lakers led 40-28.

5:53 Other than Detroit’s plodding pace, here’s the reason an hour had already gone by: 30 combined free throws taken, including 21 by the Lakers. After Kwame Brown’s miss, Odom nailed a corner three and Artest a put-back layup to put L.A. up 47-33.

0:40.5 Both Bryant and Artest made unselfish extra passes to produce an easy layup for Gasol, who used glass to put L.A. up 18 points, 56-38, at the half. The Pistons committed an almost absurd 17 team fouls, putting the Lakers on the line 25 times, for the stat of the half.

Third Quarter
8:57 A nice defensive play from Bynum turned into a Bryant layup as the center blocked his third shot of the game on an Atkins three-point attempt, gathered the ball and then found Bryant streaking ahead of the pack. Meanwhile, the refs stopped calling some of the touch fouls that were earning free throws in the first half.

59183030 5:02 Artest’s driving dish was corralled by Fisher, who promptly floated a three-point swish into the air to keep the Pistons at bay, down 17. Artest was quietly having a very solid all-around game, including 14 points, six assists (team high), five steals and five boards. Meanwhile, as Artest sunk his fourth field goal, a waiting-to-check-in-at-the-scorer’s-table Odom entertained a light-hearted conversation with a fan about his new bride.

2:38 Adam Morrison, in his first action of the night, immediately stuck a wide-open 18-foot jumper, courtesy of defensive attention on Bryant and Gasol (Jackson’s been doing an admirable job of keeping his bench players engaged by varying the minutes). Morrison was the opposite of thrilled, however, after rimming out an end-of-quarter three-pointer that was also wide open, again courtesy of Bryant’s drawing of attention off penetration. Still, L.A. led by 21 after a 27-24 quarter.

Fourth Quarter
9:28 Bynum stuck a tough turnaround hook over Kwame Brown to get to 16 points on an uber-efficient 7-for-8 from the field, plus seven boards and three blocks to that point as Gasol, Bryant, Fisher and Artest watched from the bench with L.A. up 19.

7:51 D.J. Mbenga completed Jackson’s emptying of the bench by subbing in for Bynum, joining Farmar, Brown, Morrison and Odom on the floor … At least until the 5:59 mark, when Jackson re-inserted Bryant, Gasol, and Artest alongside Josh Powell and Brown with L.A. up 15. Taking no chances to seal off a four-game road winning streak.

1:05 The Pistons went on a big run to climb within eight points of L.A., but Bryant and Gasol combined for back-to-back buckets down the stretch to officially close the door, earning a 93-81 victory for the Lakers that doubled as the team’s fourth consecutive road win.

Next up is a Tuesday tilt with Oklahoma City in L.A., before the Christmas day contest against Cleveland. Until then, your numbers:

POSTGAME NUMBERS
1 Field goal missed by Andrew Bynum in a 7-of-8 performance for 16 points, plus seven boards, three blocks and two assists.

6 Steals for Ron Artest to lead the Lakers, who collectively played the role of thief all evening, finishing with 15 team swipes. Kobe Bryant added five steals of his own to the effort.

19 Points scored by the Pistons in both the first and second quarters. Without Richard Hamilton, Ben Gordon and Tayshaun Prince, perhaps Detroit’s three best scorers, the going was tough.

22 In direct relation to No. 6 above, the Pistons committed 22 turnovers on the evning, to 15 by the Lakers.

25 First half free throw attempts by the Lakers in one of the slowest periods of the season. The Lakers made 19, including five each from Gasol and Artest, while the Pistons managed just 7-of-13.

Lakers 103, Nets 84: Running Diary

Published

on December 19, 2009

. Closed

Nets CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT THE LAKERS’ GAMEDAY PAGE
We took a look at the Lakers - Nets contest in New Jersey while it was happening, entering a thought or three each quarter as the Lakers looked for their third straight road win.

Inactives
Lakers: Luke Walton (16th straight game)
Nets: Yi Jianlian, Jarvis Hayes

Starters
Lakers: Fisher, Bryant, Artest, Gasol and Bynum
Nets: Devin Harris, Courtney Lee, Trenton Hassell, Josh Boone and Brook Lopez

Pregame Notes
- Nets big man Brook Lopez ranks first among all NBA centers in scoring at 19.7 points per game, and has amassed 15 double-doubles in 26 games. He had six straight double-doubles heading into tonight’s game. He’s also ranked first at the free throw line (85.1 percent) among all centers.
- Chris Douglas-Roberts ranks fifth among all second-year players in scoring at 16.2 points per game, behind lottery picks Lopez, Eric Gordon, O.J. Mayo and Derrick Rose.
- Pau Gasol has been rebounding like a madman of late, grabbing 20, 20, 16 and 22 in his last four games.
- The Nets rank second in the NBA in road games played to start the season, trailing only the Suns (17). L.A., on the other hand, is playing its eighth game away from STAPLES Center.
- Phil Jackson answered questions about a potential return next season, stating (as usual) that he won’t decide until this season is over, but adding that winning the championship again would positively impact the chances he would return.

Kobe Bryant NJ First Quarter
10:00 Two minutes into the game, it became clear that the Lakers wouldn’t haven’t much trouble getting good shots as Bynum, Bryant and Gasol all sank relatively open jumpers.

2:07 Bryant scored six early points, then turned on facilitator mode, finding teammates four different times for buckets, including a pretty pass to a cutting Odom (in for Bynum after two quick fouls) in transition that put L.A. up 24-17.

1:42 Adam Morrison, whom we just talked to about staying sharp despite not playing, checked in alongside Jordan Farmar for his first action in five games. With 30.5 seconds remaining in the quarter, Morrison found himself open on the baseline, and stuck his jumper to help L.A. take a 29-21 lead into the second.

Second Quarter
8:51 They call him “Congo Cash” for a reason, folks. D.J. Mbenga, in as Bynum picked up two early fouls to help deal with Brook Lopez, swished a 17-foot jumper.

5:52 When Josh Powell checked in for Mbenga, every active Laker but Sasha Vujacic had checked in for Phil Jackson, 11 in all. Though L.A. largely held onto an eight- or nine-point lead, the Nets rallied to cut it to four with 3:36 remaining.

0:25.4 New Jersey continued its solid second quarter throughout the last five minutes, getting more love from Harris, who sank all seven of his field goal attempts in the period for 17 points, good enough to give the Nets a surprising 48-46 lead. The Lakers were on the lackadaisical side in the period, seemingly content to turn the engines back on in the second half.

Gasol NJ Third Quarter
11:00 Andrew Bynum, playing in front of his home state, continued to struggle with foul trouble by committing his fourth early in the third to get Odom back into the game. L.O. would respond with a solid run of play, grabbing five boards and scoring two buckets in the quarter.

4:37 That Bryant would score 11 of L.A.’s 21 points to turn a halftime deficit into a 10-point lead certainly wasn’t a surprise (consider the engine revved up). Against some of the weaker NBA teams, the Lakers will sometimes conserve full energy for portions of the game, but always pick a time to really turn up the defensive pressure and capitalize at the other end. We saw that in the first eight minutes of the third, led by Bryant.

1:24 Consecutive hoops from Bryant and Gasol allowed the Lakers to match their biggest lead of the game at 12 points, capping an impressive stretch of defense that ceded just 16 points from New Jersey in the quarter. L.A. also much-better dealt with NJ’s matchup zone, thanks in part to two three-pointers from Fisher and Bryant’s work along the baseline.

Fourth Quarter
9:05 Bryant earned his third “MVP!” chant of the night after a pretty up-and-under reverse layup off glass, plus the foul, as he reached 29 points, 10 rebounds and five assists in yet another impressive effort.

7:33 Gasol’s 12th rebound was somewhat anticlimactic, after the Spaniard grabbed 20, 20, 16 and 22 boards in his last four games. This one came just before Shannon Brown’s pull-up jumper put the Lakers up 21 points, their biggest lead of the evening.

5:00 New Jersey’s Douglas-Roberts went down really hard on his ankle, rolling it over pretty good before a two-minute injury timeout and your proverbial adding injury to insult. The Lakers continued to cruise, building their lead to 24 points as Jackson emptied his bench.

The final score: Lakers 103, Nets 84, thanks to a 57-36 second half edge.

POSTGAME NUMBERS
3 Lakers with double-digit rebounds, including 10 from Kobe Bryant, 12 off the bench from Lamar Odom and 14 from Pau Gasol.

11 More rebounds grabbed by the Lakers in the second half.

14 Points off the bench for both Jordan Farmar and Odom, both of whom made 7-of-9 shots. Odom added four assists in 25 minutes, and Farmar three in 21 minutes as Jackson praised the effort of both.

29 Points to pace the Lakers, in 35 minutes thanks to 12-of-23 shooting from Bryant, who also added five assists and the aforementioned boards.

37.8 New Jersey’s FG percentage, compared to 49.4 from the Lakers. That’s what happens when you pit the league’s top defense against the league’s worst offense.

Lakers 107, Bucks 106: Running Diary

Published

on December 16, 2009

. Closed

94568853 CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT THE LAKERS’ GAMEDAY PAGE
We took a look at the Lakers - Bucks contest in Milwaukee while it was happening, entering a thought or three each quarter as L.A. looked to win their second straight road game.

Inactives
Lakers: Luke Walton (15th straight game)
Bucks: Francisco Elson

Starters
Lakers: Fisher, Bryant, Artest, Gasol and Bynum
Bucks: Brandon Jennings, Carlos Delfino, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, Ersan Ilyasova, Andrew Bogut

Hamblen, Jackson Demanding Focus
Phil Jackson mentioned in his pregame interview that the Lakers coaches specifically warned the Lakers that they would lose this game if they didn’t come with energy immediately. While the Bucks don’t look like the NBA’s best team on paper, they’re actually pretty good, particularly at home (9-3). Assistant coach Frank Hamblen reiterated Jackson’s point, saying that he fully expects L.A. to struggle if they’re unable to match Milwaukee’s energy. The lone American-born starter, Brandon Jennings, is from Compton, CA., while the other four hail from Cameroon (Luc Richard Mbah a Moute), Australia (Andrew Bogut), Argentina (Carlos Delfino) and Turkey (Ersan Ilyasova). That’s fun.

94567401_10 First Quarter
10:59 I don’t know if there’s anyone associated with the Lakers that doesn’t want Pau Gasol shooting much more than seven times, as he did in Chicago, so his immediate 18-footer (swish) was a pleasant sign. Completely unrelated: there’s a great chili place (”Real Chili”) in Milwaukee. Guaranteed to brighten one’s day.

6:25 After surviving three early three-pointers from the Bucks, the Lakers smartly got the ball inside to Bynum, who dropped in a baby hook before swatting consecutive shots on separate Milwaukee possessions. Bryant followed with a three and Gasol an elbow jumper to cap a quick 7-0 run that gave L.A. a one-point lead.

0:23.8 Milwaukee’s Michael Redd, playing in just his seventh game of the season as he continues to come back from knee surgery, hit a jumper that put the Bucks up a point at quarter’s close. Something else you should know: two of Milwaukee’s players make key cameos in this amazing “Boom Goes the Dynamite!!” college “sportscast*.”
*Andrew Boh-got and Hah-kim Warrick.

Second Quarter
10:42 Phil Jackson specifically mentioned the effort of Jordan Farmar and Shannon Brown as key to last night’s victory in Chicago, and the athletic twosome made an immediate impact in this one with some Farmar D (a swat of Luke Ridnour) and Brown’s two free throws at the other end.

9:55 Milwaukee, continuing to rock nothing but jump shots, got their sixth three-pointer to fall in 11 attempts, meaning 18-of-28 points had come from beyond the arc. Furthermore, they’d yet to get to the free throw line, and despite their arc success led by just two.

2:45 The bad news for the Bucks: Pau Gasol stuffed Bogut at the rim, then finished a dunk after a pretty wrap-around pass from Artest. The good news: mascot Bango appears to have recovered from ACL surgery last season, after a nasty fall through the rim at the All-Star festivities in Phoenix last season. I like him … cool Buck outfit. The half ended with just the second field goal for Jennings, which gave Milwaukee a two point edge (47-45). Gasol had 13 and 11 to pace the Lakers.

94567392_10 Third Quarter
7:06 Gasol continued his success with a layup from Kobe’s hand, capping a 6-0 run that put the Lakers up 59-58. As always, L.A. was scoring easily when it managed to get the ball inside.

2:33 The Bucks converted only their second field goal in five minutes, a Charlie Bell three, to cut L.A.’s lead to 70-66 into a time out. The Lakers had steadily flexed their defensive muscles, forcing a bevy of clanked jumpers to outrebound the Bucks 10-5 at that point in the quarter. Gasol had 16 boards already to match his total in Chicago; remember, he had back-to-back 20 rebound games before the win over the Bulls.

0:03.7 If L.A.’s close to the quarter was good, then “Jersey Shore” isn’t an awesome show. The Lakers committed two turnovers and stood and watched while Bryant clanked a fadeaway jumper (7-of-18 through three), then committed fouls on defense to allow five Bucks points that left L.A. with just a 74-71 edge after they had taken over the game midway through the period.

Fourth Quarter
9:18 The Bucks carried some third quarter mojo into the early fourth to take the lead back when Ilyasova hit his second three-pointer to make it 79-78. The Turkish forward, impressive all night, got to 20 points on Milwaukee’s next possession to answer two Kobe free throws.

4:30 L.A. got its first sniff of serious trouble when Ilyasova laid the ball off to Redd for a dunk, his 10th field goal off the bench for 22 points, giving Milwaukee a five-point lead as the crowd exploded into a standing ovation for the first time.

0:31.5 How many times has Derek Fisher come through in the clutch for L.A. (rhetorical)? He did it again with a 17-foot jumper to cap the timeliest of 7-0 runs, putting the Lakers up two. But Andrew Bogut answered at the other end with a move around Gasol, plus the foul, to tie the game, before missing the free throw. Instead of calling time out and letting the Bucks set up, L.A. went to Kobe, who dribbled down the shot clock before missing a 15-footer at the buzzer. Overtime.

94567443_10 Overtime
2:38 Gasol continued his monster game with another shot over Bogut, who’s no defensive slouch, to reach 26 points (with 21 boards) and get L.A. within one after four straight Bucks points. His 20-20 effort was L.A.’s first since March 24 of 2008, when Lamar Odom had 23 points and 21 rebounds at Golden State.

1:25 The house began to come down in Milwaukee as Ridnour pulled up in transition and stuck a jumper for a 106-100 Bucks lead. Things looking dire for L.A. But Bryant went off for five straight points, including an and-1 layup, before Artest cleared a defensive rebound with five seconds remaining to give the Lakers a chance…

0:00.1 Kobe. Kobe. Kobe. You know what happened. After catching the basketball nearly exactly in the same spot as his regulation miss, Bryant rose to dagger the Bucks with a silly fadeaway jumper as time expired, from about 15 feet over Charlie Bell.

And with that, L.A. had won its second straight road game, before a Saturday - Sunday back-to-back against New Jersey and Detroit. Until then, your numbers:

POSTGAME NUMBERS
78 Rebounds for Pau Gasol in the last four games, a ridiculous average of 19 per game. His 22 boards were a career high for the Spaniard, who followed up games of 20-20-16. Gasol added 26 points, four assists, four blocks and a steal. Decent.

47.4 Lakers shooting percentage for the game after they caught fire late, erasing a poor 38.9 percent start after one.

39 Points for Kobe Bryant, including seven in overtime.

16 Lakers edge in free throws attempted, showing how many jumpers Milwaukee took. The Bucks did hit 10 threes, to just four from L.A., who got a big one when Artest got his overtime attempt to go down.

7 Turnovers by Kobe Bryant, after eight the night before. Phil Jackson said it has to do with his broken finger, and we’ll go along with that. I think he’s excused after the game winner.

Lakers 96, Bulls 87: Running Diary

Published

on December 15, 2009

. Closed

59156637 CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT THE LAKERS’ GAMEDAY PAGE
We took a look at the Lakers - Bulls contest in the Windy City while it was happening, entering a thought or three each quarter looked to start a new winning streak.

Inactives
Lakers: Luke Walton (14th straight game)
Bulls: Jerome James

Starters
Lakers: Fisher, Bryant, Artest, Gasol and Bynum
Bulls: Derrick Rose, John Salmons, Luol Deng, Brad Miller, Joakim Noah

Phil Jackson Pregame
Always a hit with the Chicago media (I think he won a few titles here?), Jackson has now actually coached more games in L.A. than he did in Chi-town, as Lakers sideline reporter John Ireland pointed out. Jackson said he still enjoys coming back, but it’s of course much different from how it used to be. He also explained that Kobe Bryant’s finger seems better to him than it was on Saturday in Utah, certainly, and that his co-captain’s stomach ailment is no longer an issue. One other note: the Lakers have beaten the Bulls five straight time, including sweeps in the last two seasons.

First Quarter
9:52 For the NBA’s 28th rated offense, the Bulls sure started out nicely, hitting their first four field goals to take an 8-2 lead. Meanwhile, Bryant clanked his first two jumpers, but then…

59155724 2:24 … He got ridiculously, ridiculously hot (like in “Zoolander”) from the perimeter. Bryant made eight straight perimeter J’s as if he were still taking unguarded pregame shots*. His first make came after drawing the second foul on John Salmons, who had to be relieved by Kirk Hinrich, who promptly allowed seven straight makes up close and personal. The last got Kobe to 20 points and kept L.A. in a ball game that saw Chicago open at 10-for-15 (66.7 percent).
*Wait a second. Kobe has a broken finger?

0:19.5 Jordan Farmar’s been as consistently productive off the bench of late as “Jersey Shore” is consistently (unintentionally) hilarious (OK maybe not that much), and he continued the trend by nailing a corner three to even the score at 31 heading into the second. The Bulls played a very good quarter, but received quite a blow when Rose left with 5:50 to play due to a strained left rib (questionable return).

Second Quarter
9:44 Shannon Brown checked in and quickly converted a pretty left-handed layup in front of many of his family members and friends. After all, he’s from Maywood, Ill., which is a stone’s throw away from the United Center. Even better, Brown forgot to bring a belt, instead using a piece of lace/string from the team hotel. Farmar and Adam Morrison couldn’t have been happier to see it.

5:35 Kobe’s first second quarter look after a good rest? Swish. The next two Lakers possession continued a trend of extra passes that saw Lamar Odom get two easy layup thanks to Gasol’s pretty looks, putting L.A. up 49-42 to match the visiting team’s biggest lead. Odom had seven points, two assists, two boards, a block and a steal at that point.

0:47.1 Gasol had one of his worst offensive halfs of the season by making just 1-of-4 with the energetic Joakim Noah chasing him all over the place, and he appeared to take it out on Chicago with a nasty move along the baseline that culminated in a reverse dunk. That basket put L.A. up 54-48 at the half, on strength of a 23-17 second quarter.

Third Quarter
10:21 Del Negro decided to take Joakim Noah - who may have been Chicago’s most effective player with 10 points, 11 boards and five blocks - out 59156332 for rookie Taj Gibson to match up with Gasol? Meanwhile, Bryant, up-faked Salmons into his fourth foul very early in the period, bringing Hinrich (a better overall player) back into the game.

5:01 The Bulls continued to hang in after Rose got to the baseline for a pull-up jumper that cut L.A.’s lead to three at 64-61. In other news, Chicago’s mascot sat on the lap of the wife of a guy wearing a Lakers warm up jersey, sitting courtside. He was about as amused as Kobe gets after a missed call.

0:02.9 Rose missed a pull-up jumper to end a good quarter for Chicago which saw a six-point half time lead turn into a one-point deficit heading into the forth. The Lakers were only 4-for-19 in the quarter (21 percent).

Fourth Quarter
11:00 Have you been to LetShannonDunk.com? It’s fun. Check it out. Also, feel free to watch him fly as he did here, for a nasty baseline hammer that followed his three-pointer in a personal 5-0 run to start the quarter. His field goal a minute later gave him nine points on 4-of-4 shooting.

6:35 Kobe’s turnaround jumper capped a 14-4 Lakers that turned control of the game the purple and gold’s way with a 86-77 margin. Bryant had 38 points at that stage on 13-of-23 FGs, 11-of-15 FTs as L.A. tried to put the game on ice.

3:00 Odom, who was very effective early and not as effective in the middle of the game, broke Chicago’s back with a fadeaway jumper from the baseline as the shot clock expired, putting the Lakers back up eight as the Bulls tried a final rally. Who else but Bryant would seal the game with a running left-handed floater from 15-feet? It got him to 40 points, put L.A. up eight and buried the Bulls.

The Lakers will take their shot at Milwaukee tomorrow night, but until then, your numbers:

POSTGAME NUMBERS
6 Blocks from Chicago’s Joakim Noah, who recently called out LeBron James for extra celebration. Noah was a problem for L.A. all night, grabbing 20 rebounds (14 offensive) and scoring 11 points (even if it took him 16 FGA’s).

10 Combined missed threes in the game from Kobe Bryant (1-for-5) and Ron Artest (1-for-7).

11 Free throws made by Bryant, as well as Chicago’s entire team.

20 Points scored by Bryant in a fantastic first quarter, en route to a game-high 42 on 15-of-26 field goals and 11-of-15 from the charity stripe. What hurt finger?

100 Shannon Brown’s shooting percentage on four attempts, including a three and a nasty dunk early in the fourth that turned the game’s momentum. Brown, a native of Maywood, Illinois (a few blocks from United Center), did the deed in front of many of his family members and friends. Special night for the second-year Laker.

Lakers 94, Jazz 102: Running Diary

Published

on December 12, 2009