If there’s anything to worry about, it’s McDyess. He’s been playing out of his mind this month (14.2 pts, 12.7 rebs), so Odom and Gasol have to control the glass. Pau also needs to dominate Kwame so I can get the horror story of him playing well against us at Staples Center out of my head.

#106, I would not say that Sasha is slumping, but I would say that he continues his great inconsistency. In four of the last 5 games (prior to OKC) Sasha shot 2-3, 4-4, 2-4, and 2-3 (in the other game he was 1-6). In four of the five games prior to the set I just mentioned, he was 1-4, 1-3, 3-7, and 2-6 (in the other game he was 5-9). Last night he was 1-6. Last season, Sasha was (overall) a consistent player shooting a great percentage from 3 and providing good defense on most opponents. This year he is far from that, and swings wildly from good game to bad or sets of good games to sets of bad ones. One other point- Earlier this year I mentioned that Sasha is one player, based off his skill, who’s primary shots should be taken from 3 point territory (I made that point in reference to Ariza and how most his shots should *not* be 3 point shots, but rather shots at the basket off slashes and backside cuts). I bring this up because last night, Sasha shot six times and and only one of them was from behind the 3 point line. Now, like I said I didn’t see a lot of the game, but this implies to me that he was not playing to his strengths. That he was taking shots off the dribble or trying to attack the basket. Maybe someone who watched the entire game could verify that this was actually the case. But if it was, he needs to not do that as much and shoot more spot up jumpers rather than trying to create *better* shots for himself by creating off the dribble, because for him those aren’t better shots, they’re worse.

Two troubling trends: Kobe continues his poor shooting and “volume” scoring. And Sasha continues to slump. It’s not just that Sasha misses open shots, it’s that he forces things, trying to create on his own when he should be moving the ball around. He’s looking more like a black hole than a machine right now because once he gets the ball no teammate touches it again that possession.

It’s hard to pinpoint why Morrison plays in such lackluster fashion. His injuries may have slowed him down, but the devil’s advocate in me says maybe he was always this slow, maybe he got by in college with length and the opponent’s lack of size. At this rate of playing time, though, I don’t see Morrison developing much.

102. I don’t think the injured finger has much if any effect on Kobe any more. As far as I know scar tissue has developed. He’s played like himself with it and has had spectacular finishes with it as well as precise shooting. He’s also had his small hands his entire career (and, uh, life) so I don’t think that explains the recent denials at the rim either.