Pau Gasol Won’t Play Tonight

According to the Los Angeles Times, Lakers forward Pau Gasol will miss tonight’s (Oct. 30) game against the Dallas Mavericks at Staples Center. Gasol skipped practice yesterday (Oct. 29) due to a strained right hamstring, which has been ailing him for over two weeks, causing him to miss the last six exhibition games. The Lakers did say they are optimistic that Gasol will be able to play in the team’s third  game of the season, when they host the Atlanta Hawks at Staples Center on Sunday.

The Lakers have won the last six games against the Dallas Mavericks during the last two seasons, but this season the Mav’s added two new players to their roster: Shawn Marion and Drew Gooden. Marion and Gooden join Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Kidd, while Dallas forward Josh Howard’s condition is said to be day-to-day (he is recovering from ankle surgery).

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Permalink - Posted in General on October 30, 2009 - Post a comment

Lamar Odom Starts in Pau Gasol’s Place

Lamar Odom proved his worth on the Lakers’ roster in Tuesday night’s (Oct. 27) season-opener against down-the-street neighbors the Clippers, starting in place in injured Pau Gasol and finishing the game with 16 points, 13 rebounds and 3 bandages, reports the Los Angeles Times. During the 40 minutes he was on the court on Tuesday, Odom worked for it–and walked away with three different wounds on his right arm (thus the bandages spanning from his bicep to his forearm). Out due to a strained right hamstring, Gasol may be back in time for the Lakers to host the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night (Oct. 30), in which case it’s back to the bench for Odom.

Said the newlywed (to reality star Khloe Kardashian, who was in attendance on Tuesday), “The strength to my game is that I’m able to do it and I’m prepared at all times. Right now, mentally, physically, I’m prepared to do what I have to do to help this team.” Describing his role in Tuesday’s game as well as this point in his career, Odom continued to tell the Times, “A lot of minutes, short minutes. Dive, rebound, score, make plays on the first or second unit. My objective at this point in my career is to win.”

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Permalink - Posted in General on October 29, 2009 - Post a comment

Lakers Win Season Opener

On the heels of the championship ring ceremony at Staples Center yesterday (Oct. 27), the Lakers played their season-opener against down-the-street rivals the Clippers. During the last two seasons, the Lakers have won eight consecutive games against the Clippers (by an average of 22 points) but the team put up more of a fight last night. Although the Lakers eventually walked away with a 99-92 win, they pulled it off in the fourth quarter. Exactly one year ago, the Lakers beat the Clippers 117-79, but last night’s victory wasn’t as much of a blowout. The Lakers are now 1-0 in the 2009-10 season, and during the season-opener Kobe Bryant had 33 points and Andrew Bynum had 26 points and 13 rebounds.

Before the game, Lakers Coach Phil Jackson warned the team: “Someone on the other end of the floor wants to beat the pumpkin out of you.” And the Clippers did put up a fight, but with 2:57 to play and the Lakers ahead 94-81 Lakers’ fans began to shuffle out of the arena, knowing what the outcome of the game would be. The Lakers were without Pau Gasol (due to a strained right hamstring) and the Clippers without rookie Blake Griffin (due to a stress fracture, right knee cap), although Bynum played despite passing on the last two exhibition games due to a sore shoulder.

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Permalink - Posted in General on October 28, 2009 - Post a comment

The Elephant, err Bull, in the Room for the Lakers

The regular NBA season starts today (Oct. 27), and in addition to defending their NBA title, the Los Angeles Times reports some rumblings about the Lakers’ potential to beat the Chicago Bulls’ record 72-win season in 1995-96. Prior to winning their 15th NBA title, the Lakers won 65 games in the regular season, and tonight they begin another season against hometown rivals, the Clippers, with the Times asking the question, “Can the Lakers beat the almost mythical regular-season record for victories in a season, set by the Chicago Bulls and Michael Jordan in 1995-96 on the way to an NBA championship?”

While it is common knowledge that Kobe Bryant, with four NBA championships under his belt, is trying to match Jordan’s six, he has also quietly mentioned beating the Bulls’ record. After being prompted by the Times, however, Kobe would only say, “That’s the goal, try to get better every year. Last year we had games where was lost maybe three right at the buzzer, and we could have won 68 games.” In addition to having the best player in the NBA (for the Bulls it was Jordan, for the Lakers it’s Bryant), both the Bulls and the Lakers had a solid No. 2 player (for the Bulls it was Scottie Pippen, for the Lakers it’s Pau Gasol) and a wild card (for the Bulls it was Dennis Rodman; for the Lakers it’s Ron Artest). And let’s not forget Phil Jackson, who led Chicago to that record (as well as six championships) and is in his 10th season with the Lakers.

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Permalink - Posted in General on October 27, 2009 - Post a comment

Lakers Want to Become Repeat Champions

The Lakers host the Clippers in their season opener on Tuesday (Oct. 27) and know that in order to repeat their championship win last season the team has to remain healthy. Just over four months ago, the Lakers ended a seven-year championship drought in Orlando, and they are hoping to do it again this season. Since last season, the Lakers kept Lamar Odom, lost Trevor Ariza and added Ron Artest to the roster. Said General Manager Mitch Kupchack, “I think our biggest concern, as with most teams in the NBA that have a chance to contend, is staying healthy. Our coach knows how to handle the throttle for players in a 110-game season. I’m not that concerned with complacency or this team getting cocky. We have pretty good leadership and I wouldn’t call that a major concern. I think staying injury-free would be first and foremost our best shot to repeat.”

The championship ring ceremony will take place tonight (Oct. 26) at 7:15pm and Kupchak told the Los Angeles Times that he is ready to take home his new piece of jewelry saying, “The boxes will be a lot heavier. I’ve had a chance to preview the rings, and the box is going to be heavier and a little bigger than past boxes. A lot of bling.”

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Permalink - Posted in General on October 26, 2009 - Post a comment

Lakers’ Luke Walton Continues to Recover from Back Injury

Lakers’ Luke Walton is back at practice after taking one-and-a-half weeks off due to  a back injury, and told the Los Angeles Times that he lost stamina but is anxious to get back on the court whenever Lakers Coach Phil Jackson will let him. Said Walton at practice Wednesday (Oct. 21), “I lost some of my stamina that I had built up in the first couple of weeks, but that’ll come back. Having to shut it down pretty much completely for a week made the legs get a little heavy.”

This isn’t the first time Walton has sustained an injury during the Lakers’ training camp (he has also had issues with his ankle and hamstring). Jackson told the Times, “His injury was somewhat of a fluke. That kind of thing happens to him. None of them have really been contact issues. They’ve been [from] running, [an] ankle, pulling up [a] hamstring. This one was the back. So we’re not too worried about this taking him out of rhythm.” Walton did not play in last night’s exhibition game against the Denver Nuggets at Anaheim’s Honda Center but may play tonight when the Lakers face off against the Nuggets again in Walton’s San Diego hometown.

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Permalink - Posted in General on October 23, 2009 - Post a comment

The Lakers Beat Golden State In Spite of Traffic Jam

The Lakers arrived just 39 minutes before tipoff at Tuesday’s (Oct. 20) exhibition game against the Golden State Warriors due to a traffic jam caused by a brush fire near the Pomono Freeway, but that didn’t stop them from winning! After a two-and-a-half hour road trip, the Lakers beat the Warriors at Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario 113-107 and Lakers Coach Phil Jackson joked, “I think we’ll take a helicopter next time.” Although the NBA can technically fine a team for arriving so late, a spokesman said the Lakers had justifiable circumstances. Jackson also revealed the team’s strategy for not having their normal pregame preparation saying, “You just short-change the [locker room] talk that the guys normally have. You’re just going to strap them on, pull up your jocks and let’s go.”

Lakers Kobe Bryant and Andrew Bynum has 21 and 20 points, respectively, while Golden State’s guard-forward Stephen Jackson has 15 points and some harsh words for Bryant: “I’m not a fan of Kobe. I’m not somebody who looks up to him. I’m a grown man, so when I go out there and play the game, I play the game. I feel like I’m just as good as him. I might not get the publicity or the notoriety he gets, but I feel like I can play with anybody in the NBA.” Although Kobe declined to comment, Phil Jackson said in response, “That’ll motivate Kobe. I was wondering why he was so hyped up to start the game.”

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Permalink - Posted in General on October 22, 2009 - Post a comment

Adam Morrison’s Potential

Lakers reserve forward Adam Morrison missed just two of seven shots, made all four of his three-pointers and finished with 14 points during the Lakers exhibition game against the Clippers at Staples Center on Sunday night (Oct. 18). The 25-year-old has been urged to take open shots by Lakers Coach Phil Jackson during training camp and appears to be taking his words to heart. Said Morrison to the Los Angeles Times, “When you’ve got the coach backing you up to take more shots, that definitely helps. I’ve shot the ball well in practice, but I didn’t shoot it well in the first couple games in the preseason. I don’t think I was being aggressive enough. [Sunday] night I was and the shots staretd falling.”

Morrison has gotten more playing time lately (backup small forward Luke Walton was out the past two games due to a sore back) and is making 40% of his shots, 50% of his three-pointers, averaging 16.6 minutes per game and 4.6 points in five exhibition games thus far. Said Morrison of his progress, “I think my legs are back. That’s the biggest thing. Getting more comfortable and getting in the right spots in the triangle helps.” After Monday’s practice (Oct. 19) Jackson said about Morrison, “It’s just a matter of having an opportunity to play some minutes so he gets comfortable out there. I think that Adam is one of those guys where it takes him a little bit of time to loosen up.” Read the full article at LATimes.com.

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Permalink - Posted in General on October 21, 2009 - Post a comment

Contract Decisions Loom for Five Lakers

Five Lakers–Derek Fisher, Jordan Farmar, Adam Morrison, DJ Mbenga and Josh Powell–are in the final year of their contracts and the Los Angeles Times is taking a look at what that might mean. Last year Lamar Odom and Trevor Ariza were in similar positions and in the end Ariza left the Lakers for the Houston Rockets and Odom stayed in L.A. One year from now, Fisher will be 36-years-old; he makes $5 million this season and has already expressed his desire to play after his contract is up. Said Fisher about his future, “I’m kind of excited about it this time around. I think I’m in a more powerful position in terms of being in a contract year because I’m confident in what my choices are. I’m confident in my ability to keep playing for as long as I want to because of the way I prepare and train and my value to the team. I’m comfortable that if a higher power took basketball away from me for whatever reason, I’m going to be successful in other areas the rest of my life. So there’s no fear of next year for me.”

Farmar and Morrison, almost-23 and 25, respectively, may not share Fisher’s sense of calm, as they have less history to fall back on and have competition (Morrison seeks more small-forward time while Farmar has to compete with Shannon Brown as Fisher’s backup point guard). The Lakers could give both players contract extensions before the regular season begins next Tuesday (Oct. 27) but that doesn’t look likely–which means they would become restricted free agents next July. Powell and Mbenga’s return is on a year-by-year basis and will be contingent upon their backup play this season; they both are under contract for $959,000.

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Permalink - Posted in General on October 20, 2009 - Post a comment

Shannon Brown Starts in Lakers’ Exhibition Game

Due to Lamar Odom’s bruised leg and Pau Gaol’s strained hamstring, Lakers backup Shannon Brown got moved up to starter in the Lakers’ 91-87 exhibition win over the Charlotte Bobcats at Staples Center Saturday night (Oct. 17). Lakers Coach Phil Jackson put guard Brown in the backcourt with Derek Fisher while Kobe Bryant and Ron Artest started as forwards and Andrew Bynum started as center. Luke Walton was also out (sore back) and Jackson told the L.A. Times, “I’m concerned that we have some minor injuries at this point.”

In other NBA news, there is a new rule under which players are allowed to take two steps before they have to stop, pass or shoot, reports the L.A. Times. Said Jackson, “Well, I guess if you can’t call it, you just regulate it as a rule. But, it’s really hard to digest that as a person that’s been in basketball for as long as I’ve been in basketball, that we’re just going to give in to this new rule of doing it.” Jackson referred to Reggie Miller’s tendency to catch the ball and take two steps back to make a shot from the three-point line and claimed he’d always been in opposition of the “two-step walk,” also saying that he thinks Europe has been influencing the NBA.

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Permalink - Posted in General on October 19, 2009 - Post a comment


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