Well, wasn't that fun? Thanks to Michael Jordan's rapid "ascension" to be the G.O.A.T. bad owner, the Los Angeles Lakers picked up an easy win, beating the Charlotte Bobcats 106-73, just before they embark on their annual two-week Grammys road trip. Having their way inside and out, the Lakers overwhelmed MJ's team in a blowout so thorough that Luke Walton actually saw playing time.
The game started out with the Lakers pounding the ball inside for a few possessions, establishing Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol easily. Then Kobe decided "Hey, you know what? No one here can guard me. Plus I'm on fire," as he looked to improve on his 35-point, 5-9 three-point domination of the Wolves. He came out firing. After a dust-up with Gerald Henderson, score 14-11 Lakers, Kobe apparently decided he wanted to rest the second half and proceeded to light up Henderson and whomever else covered him to an 18-point first quarter that set the tone for the rest of the game. After "only" six points in the 2nd quarter, Kobe got a little three happy, before letting Andrew Bynum and Pau do their work, en route to a 24-point lead at half.
As it usually goes in the third quarter, the Lakers come out a bit lazy, then the reserves reminded us why the Lakers aren't real contenders yet, as Charlotte tried to claw back. Clawing might be a strong word for the Bobcats, seeing as they have nothing to scratch with. This team is bad. Too short and too terrible. Stu Lantz actually had to sing praises of Henderson for being the Bobcats' leading scorer. Umm yeah....Add that to the fact that fat Boris Diaw starts at PF for them. They were able to get the score as close as 13-points until Troy Murphy, Andrew Goudelock, Matt Barnes, and even Jason Kapono put on a 4th quarter gun show that kept Kobe and Pau resting for the night. Combined, the reserves went 10-14 from deep, and the Lakers shot 46.2% overall from deep on 12-26 shots. Whatever ammo they used, I hope they packed it for the upcoming road trip.