For the first time this season, a reserve is our Lakers' Player of the Week. During a week in which the Lakers went 3-0 against the Raptors, Hawks, and Suns, it was improved bench play that allowed the Lakers to cruise to two easy wins (could have been three), and give the sense that this squad is making strides.

It feels as if these Lakers are slowly coming around. Mike Brown seems to be figuring his team out, and coming to a rotation he feels comfortable with. This consistency in minutes and roles has led to better play from the back-ups. Largely due to Steve Blake's return, the bench has improved enough to give the Lakers some semblance of balance.

The largest benefactor of Blake's return has been Barnes. With a point guard who pays attention to cutters, Barnes has been able to excel at doing the only two things he should focus on, running and rebounding. He's finding opportunities in transition due to his ability to find the right seam on fast break chances. Also, he's been great a finding cuts in halfcourt offense, which lead to wide open lay-ups and drives. Steve Blake may have trouble making simple entry passes to Andrew Bynum, but he's doing just fine rewarding Barnes' hustle. When those cuts aren't leading to lay-ups, they're creating opportunities for easy putbacks off rebounds. The three-pointers we wanted Matt to stop shooting? He's only shooting them when he's wide-the-f-open and has to. On defense, he is what he is. He has some trouble at times, but it isn't for lack of trying. He plays as well as he can, steals lazy passes, and hustles for loose balls.

Even with the uncertainty of what this roster will look like as the trade deadline approaches, and in spite of their lack of quality wins, these Lakers are starting to gel. They seem poised to make a run due the bench's increased reliability. No matter who's on the floor with Kobe, Pau, or Andrew, the rest of the Lakers have to make the defense accountable for them in order for the offense to improve. Matt Barnes has been successful taking advantage of his opportunities for the past two weeks now, leading to the Lakers feeling comfortable enough at back-up small forward to send Devin Ebanks to the D-League for reps. Let's hope Matt's play puts enough pressure on Metta World Peace to take notice. How Matt is playing is how MWP should be playing. I imagine Coach Brown's conversation with Ron Ron mentioned this.

With Kobe being Kobe, Pau being aggressive, and Bynum looking like an All-Star at times, any impact from the bench can help put this team over the hump, and on the road towards real improvement. Whomever that bench will consist of for the rest of the season, we should know for sure soon. For now, they're getting better and I'll take comfort in that. Congrats Matt.

Here are his stats for the week:

9.3 points, 5.6 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1.3 steals in 21.3 minutes per game. He shot 10-of-19 for 52.3% from the floor and 2-of-3 from three for 66%.

Highlights after the Jump....

Continue reading this post »

Would y'all be mad if I gave the Player of the Week to a member of an opposing team? Seriously, that's how good Jeremy Lin has been for the Knicks. That's how great a story this "Lin-sanity" (or whatever clever pun you want to use) is. So much, that I'm a little embarrassed to admit that his "slicing and dicing" was quite fun to watch. Even if he destroyed my beloved Lakers. I didn't even care.

You just had to have a feeling that Lin might carve the Lakers up. A match-up against Fish is typically a reason for any point guard to look good (Aaron Brooks anybody?), but the Lakers were clearly worn down from the road trip, especially coming off a hard played overtime game against their biggest rivals just the night before. All of Fish's bumping and grinding wasn't enough to stop Lin from stepping up in his first real chance in the spotlight. He drove through the lane like it was a drill, nailed shot after shot, and looked so damned Steve-Nashian while doing it. Not only did he do it on national TV against the Lakers, who sport a top defense, Lin also made Kobe Bryant an after thought in an arena where Kobe's affection is reciprocated. In New York, where Kobe always looks to do something special for a respectful and appreciative Knicks fanbase. Kobe in Madison Square and it was Jeremy Lin who was the show? Tip of the cap, my man.

All of a sudden, the Knicks have hope again. If Lin is the real deal in Mike D'Antoni's system, the pieces they have could make the Seven Second or Less Suns a distant memory in our minds. We know what D'Antoni's 7SOL offense looked like with Amar'e in Phoenix, but Steve Nash never had a weapon like 'Melo by his side, nor a center like Tyson Chandler controlling the defense. Just like that, the Knicks future looks bright after failing with two supposed superstars who were supposed to return the Knicks to glory. Who cares about Lin's heritage? What he's accomplishing in such a short span -- with no warning, nor blue chip background, thrust into the spotlight after just getting signed-- is worth every second SportsCenter uses to milk this story. We love underdogs, and Lin has very loudly made us all feel that hard work and determination go a long way when taken advantage of. His story isn't just about basketball. It's a heartwarming life lesson we should all pay attention to. He's symbolic of making the most of the opportunities when given the chance. He's not just opening the door in front of him, he's busting the damn thing down. His journey to the stage he's shining on is more impressive than his gaudy box score. 38 points, 7 assists, 4 rebounds, 1 win, but millions of people who now believe. And they're not just Knicks fans.

*Pau Gasol is the Lakers' Player of the Week largely due to his great play against the hated Celtics. He averaged 19 points and 11.7 rebounds per game in three contests this week. Nice numbers, but his aggressive determination, overtime-inducing tip, and game-saving block against Ray Allen and the Celtics are what give Pau his second POTW of the season.

Highlights after the Jump...

Continue reading this post »

This week was a close race for Player of the Week. Kobe Bryant's name remains permanently etched on the list of candidates, and he's won far more often than I would like to say. He's always there, and always performing. Except for the success of the team, other players are going to force this into an actual competition worth seriously considering. Including last Saturday's game versus the Bucks, the Lakers received considerable contributions from Kobe, Andrew Bynum, Pau Gasol and rookie Andrew Goudelock en route to a 3-2 record for the week following last night's loss to the Jazz.

As I mentioned already, Kobe is Kobe. I'm tired of giving him this award, because the other Lakers must step up if this team is going to be successful. The biggest weakness is depth, especially at guard, where scoring and play-making duties are made by these players: Kobe, Kobe, Kobe, Kobe & Kobe. If you want to describe the Lakers' lack of talent at guard outside of Kobe, all you need to tell anyone is that Jason Kapono plays meaningful minutes for them. Ummm....yeah, okay? With that said, it's no wonder the rookie Goudelock has been given a chance to show what he's got. He's making the most of his opportunity by being aggressive enough that it seems Mike Brown has given him the green light when he's on the floor, and has done it well enough that he's been dubbed "Mini-Mamba" by none other than the new king of giving compliments by comparing others to himself, Kobe. You're welcome. In 5 games, he averaged 9.8 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 1.4 assists on 46.3% shooting in 20.4 minutes per game. The Lakers need production from a guard and it's nice to see another player even want to step up. Keep in mind, he's still a rook, and I can't help but think of Shannon Brown's fall off. I'll take it long as it lasts.

This week, we finally started to see a glimpse of Bynum and Gasol becoming the double-headed frontcourt monster we expect them to be. Both scored and rebounded in bunches, yet managed to not get in each other's way, while continuing to find open shooters (who actually knocked down shots). Our big three actually looked like a big three. Pau's resurgence has come since reiterating his desire for his role back as main post threat, and Drew has seemed to ease back into a tertiary option that suits him better. You haven't heard anything about Kobe overshooting lately, huh? It helps when the bigs are aggressive and efficient. I could hand either of them this award, but I'm going with Drew because he finally earned that All-Star nod. Congrats, young fella. I'm impressed how he's dealt with this season with nothing but Dwight chatter (of which I'm very guilty). I don't know what will happen anymore, but we're in good hands no matter what. Now, let's get some wins on the road.

Here are his stats:

19.8 points, 9.8 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 2.0 blocks, 2.4 turnovers on 64.5% shooting in 35.2 minutes per game.

It comes with much relief that I'm finally able to type a name that isn't Kobe Bryant as Player of the Week. Sure, Kobe had a decent week, but we know what we get with Kobe. It's easy for him to be the deserving player week after week after week after week...etc. You get the point. I'm tired of giving him the award. Of course he's the Lakers best player, but their fate no longer lies on the successful success of the #KobeSystem. The team needs someone else to step up and shine in Kobe's light in order for this team to really make headway in becoming a contender.

After weeks of floating around the perimeter watching Andrew Bynum take over his role as the beta to Kobe's alpha, and immediately after struggles against Indiana, Pau finally did away with his careful, measured requests for change. Instead of tiptoeing around his desire for Kobe to take advantage of the Lakers advantage in the post, he challenged Mike Brown to get him more involved in the post. A place where Pau used to do his best work. So well that just a year ago, he was being labeled by many as the best bigman in the Association. Yeah, he talked it. Then he went out and walked the same walk that helped the Lakers win back-to-back championships. He wanted the ball. He got it. He did something with it.

This Pau is what the Lakers need to find their groove again. Black Swan Pau operating in the paint. Not White Swan-tertiary option-jumpshooting Pau watching Kobe and Andrew deal with double teams. No matter the Lakers' desire to get Andrew Bynum more involved, in my eyes, young fella hasn't shown me that he's ready to take over a role Pau once excelled at. The yin to Kobe's yang. There was a glimpse that the offense still runs much better going through Kobe then Pau, rather than Kobe then Drew. It may have been only one game, and I refuse to put too much stock in beating the Clippers, but this game meant something to Pau. The Clips tested him, called him soft, but he responded well. He showed a pride we're only used to seeing from Kobe, and a role of leadership that Bynum has yet to find. Just maybe, we'll get the feeling that things will be alright if Pau plays with this fire all season. Oh, and it doesn't hurt when three pointers actually go in.

This pick was made prior to last night's loss against the Pacers, which will be factored into this week's award. The thoughts expressed here were also made prior to the game.

I really hate choosing a Player of the Week in uneventful weeks like this. Being a spoiled Lakers fan, just watching a guy play well while the team loses in horrific fashion doesn't sit well. Maybe if I were a Sacramento or Washington fan, looking for some light in what is usually a losing campaign would be easier to do. Seeing as this employs talents like Kobe Bryant, Andrew Bynum, and Pau Gasol, any performance worthy of Player of the Week, be it Kobe, Metta World Peace, or even Darius Morris (far-fetched at this point) should translate to nice wins. That wasn't the case at all this past week. Even worse, it's beginning to feel like we'll have more of these weeks than we'd like to. The Lakers' "Big 3" just aren't enough to overcome the overall system and talent deficiencies the team has.

Enter Kobe Bryant...

Continue reading this post »

That was quite a treat Kobe Bryant gave us this past week, eh? Defending his pride and our faith, Kobe had the basketball world at attention as he efficiently hung 40-points or more in four straight games, proving not only that he still has that magic, but that he also has absolutely no plans on giving up his stake as being considered the best basketball player in the world.

Of course, all matters Kobe come with intense scrutiny. Is he taking too many shots? Is he not getting the ball to his big guys enough? Is he going overboard with "hero" ball? Blah, blah, blah. I know he can be a bit frustrating at times, and lord knows at some point, we've all expressed some sort of dissatisfaction with him. Let's face it, Kobe's awesome self-belief does come with some sense of selfishness that can be awfully frustrating to watch if he's not on his game. Therein lies the rub.

If he's not on his game. "If" makes all the difference in the world, because deep down we don't worry so much about how Kobe plays so long as he's still good enough to carry the team on his back. Whether or not he should try to is another story, but the very fact that he still can in his sixteenth season, through all the injuries, and under a growing number of doubting eyes is nothing short of amazing. He's performing at the highest level when many thought he couldn't.

Continue reading this post »

Oh, Kobe. I don't know how he does it. Every season it seems he has the basketball world over-analyzing every shot he takes and every decision he makes. It's like a script. Kobe gets hurt, Kobe continues to shoot, he'll miss a lot of shots, we get worried, and discuss our frustrations and get into debates, then he plays great and looks like "vintage" Kobe, we all shut up for a while, then we'll wonder why we ever doubted him. Rinse and repeat. I swear this happens once a month for the past few seasons.

Some of our concerns are warranted, of course. Kobe's sheer will and stubborn pride won't allow him to do anything other than what he's always done. Some of us wonder if Kobe's expectations of himself are realistic or in tune with what's best for the team. So we count his shots, and roll our eyes when he vows to keep shooting. We implore him to go through the post more as he reiterates that his role is to shoot the ball. Then he comes back and shoot even more! Oh boy...

Continue reading this post »

The way the Lakers have been playing in their post All-Star break 17-1 run might just be the best basketball this team has played in the past four seasons.  That's saying a lot considering how good this team has been and how well the last few seasons have ended.  I can't think of any stretch in which this team has looked so in tune.  Everyone who sees regular playing time is making a contribution.  Of course, Kobe and Pau are their typical All-World selves.  Lamar Odom is on his way to 6th Man of the Year.  Even better, X-Factors Andrew Bynum and Ron Artest are impacting the game like All-Star starters.  

Production from talent like that alone is enough to win most nights.  They're closing out close games, eating up leads, playing tough defense, and rolling supposed conference contenders.  But they didn't get to this awesome level of play just on the backs of their stars.  As the Playoffs arrive, even the role players are fulfilling their roles, and it's making the Lakers seem invincible.  

In considering the Player of the Week, every player has a shot to win because we choose the winner based on whomever played their role within the team best.  This week, the winner is Steve Blake.  

Say what?

Continue reading this post »