The holidays are upon us and the Lakers have gotten a nice little rest – their last game was on Tuesday and the next one isn’t until tomorrow. They’ve managed to win three in a row – games they certainly should have won but it’s still a relief after the recent skid. Nonetheless, the team […]
Friday Forum
Last night seemed to be a strange amalgamation. The two halves of basketball couldn’t have been more different. It was as if the team had arrived at a crucial juncture and taken the fork to the right – to a style of tactical basketball far removed from seven seconds or less. As Steve Kerr and […]
Wednesday Storylines
I am not quite sure what to write about this Lakers team. I don’t want to be an alarmist and in fact, I don’t feel like one. I don’t feel like ranting and I don’t feel like trying to put a positive spin on things either. A smart man once told me to look in […]
Friday Forum
To say that it has been an up and down season so far for the Los Angeles Lakers, is only stating the obvious. They have been equally adroit at winning convincingly, and phoning it in. Tonight they face the Oklahoma City Thunder, in that team’s arena. Pau Gasol will be out of action once again, […]
Wednesday Storylines
Smart money would not have predicted that this season’s Lakers would be lower in the standings at this point in time than last season’s lockout model, or the Smush versions, or the Rudy T. limited edition. I’m not quite sure about that last one though. The 2004-05 campaign ended with a .415 average under Frank […]
Friday Forum
Last night was one of the most entertaining games of the still-young NBA season. Two top teams, one from the east, one from the west. The reigning champion Miami Heat with their big three superstars, LBJ, Wade and Bosh, plus legendary shooter Ray Allen, versus the always-dangerous San Antonio Spurs, starring…. a bunch of bench […]
Wednesday Storylines
All professional sports teams play the expectations game to one degree or another and with varying degrees of success. There are the perennial bottom feeders, the rank and file, the contenders and at the top of the pyramid, the elite franchises. In basketball, it has been often pointed out that two teams have won the […]
Friday Forum
It is the day after Thanksgiving. The day after families and friends and large meals, the day after expressions of gratitude and a tradition in this country that goes back a ways, to a long ago harvest. For NBA athletes and coaches and all the people that make up a basketball organization, it will be […]
Friday Forum
Mike D’Antoni hobbled into his introductory presser and sat ever so slowly down. The way he moved he could have been Phil Jackson – but he isn’t. D’Antoni was in a perfectly affable mood, if admittedly fried on painkillers. He had a knee replaced just two weeks ago. The new Lakers coach had a lot […]
Wednesday Storylines
Some basketball was played last night. Coach D’Antoni had yet to arrive and meet his new wards but it felt as if a corner might have been turned. The game was winnable and it would have been sweet if it had. But make no mistake – this was a Lakers team that was fired up. […]