For the first time under new coach Mike Brown, the Lakers are facing a game that could finish out their opening round series against the Denver Nuggets and earn their right to challenge the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference semi-finals.
Brown didn't think a speech is needed after Monday's practice since he believes everyone is aware tonight's game is a close-out game.
Of course, Brown might be setting himself up for some lashing from Laker fans if the Lakers fail to eliminate the Nuggets at Staples Center. But coaching a team that has more experience in these situations and is more familiar with landscape of the road to the NBA Finals than his resumé is trickier than most might think.
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This is the final month of the regular season for the Lakers (35-20) until the opening round of the playoffs begin. Their victory over the Clippers last Wednesday pushed them 2 1/2 games in front of their crosshallway rivals for the 3rd seed in the west.
With only 11 games left, including 5 home games, a string of wins is exactly what the Lakers need to make sure they get homecourt advantage in the first round.
Tonight, they'll try to capture the season series against the visiting Houston Rockets (29-25) and their third 5th win in a row.
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There were some uncertainty before tip-off whether or not Andrew Bynum would return after skipping Tuesday's game against the Nets to rest a mild left ankle sprained he suffered against Golden State last Sunday. But to the Los Angeles Clippers' undesirable luck, Bynum played and wreak havoc to a tune of a season-high 36 points along with 8 rebounds and 4 blocks.
Andrew wasn't the only reason why the Clippers' 6-game winning streak and 7-game home streak were snapped in one night. Kobe Bryant continued his suddenly efficient shooting and dominated the perimeter with 31 points on 13-out-of-19 shooting. Two of those points became the game's biggest shot when he nailed a 21-footer on the face of Randy Foye to give the Lakers a 110-106 lead with 25 seconds left in the 4th quarter and putting the season series in the books 2-1 in favor of the purple and gold.
The win not only puts the Lakers 2 1/2 games ahead of the Clippers in the west for the 3rd seeding, it also gives them a tie-breaker should both teams finish the regular season with identical records.
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According to the LA Times' Ben Bolch, the Lakers (34-20) have thrown more alley-oop passes than their crosshallway rivals Los Angeles Clippers (32-21) coming into their final regular season meeting tonight. But the Clippers do hold an 82-72 advantage on made dunks over the purple and gold.
Interesting stats but ultimately useless for either team unless the result of tonight's game comes down to which team out-lobs the other.
That's probably not going to be the case, I'm sure. But after fooling around with the Hornets, Warriors, and Nets, which are the latest in a series of games this year, the Lakers better put on their serious faces tonight against a team breathing down their necks waiting to knock them off of their 3rd seating in the west.
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If seeing Lamar Odom as a Maverick for the first time was weird, then hosting Derek Fisher as a member of the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder (38-12) tonight should be one of the most bizarre experiences Kobe Bryant and the Lakers (31-19) should ever have.
After spending 13 years in purple and gold, Fisher was traded to the Houston Rockets at the trade deadline on March 15 in exchange for forward/center Jordan Hill. The Rockets eventually agreed to a contract buyout with Fisher allowing him to be a waiver wire signee for OKC.
Fisher has only played in 4 games sporadically for the Thunder averaging 3.8 points per and 1 assist per game.
But don't expect Kobe to carry any sentimentals on the floor against his long-time friend and teammate tonight.
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In honor of Derek Fisher's 13 years in purple and gold and his first return to Staples Center as a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday, here is a collection of Fisher's 5 biggest shots as a Laker. You'll always be a Laker, Fish!
5. DEC. 8, 2010 - LAKERS vs. CLIPPERS (2010-2011 SEASON) (Thanks to JBleezie)
After leading 20-18 at the start of the 2nd quarter, the Lakers got overrun by the young Clippers and saw themselves down 71-65 going into the 4th quarter. But thanks to Shannon Brown's 11 points and their defense in the final quarter, the Lakers fought back to a 86-85 deficit setting up a rare layup game-winner for Fisher with 3.1 seconds left in the game.
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5. DEC. 8, 2010 - LAKERS vs. CLIPPERS (2010-2011 SEASON) (Thanks to JBleezie)
After leading 20-18 at the start of the 2nd quarter, the Lakers got overrun by the young Clippers and saw themselves down 71-65 going into the 4th quarter. But thanks to Shannon Brown's 11 points and their defense in the final quarter, the Lakers fought back to a 86-85 deficit setting up a rare layup game-winner for Fisher with 3.1 seconds left in the game.
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If you know Pau Gasol enough, then you should know that he has been a devoted ambassador for UNICEF since 2003. Last year, he started Pau's Project — an initiative that began in Ethiopia that supports schools in Africa, the Nelson Mandela Foundation, and The Hamburg Society to promote education for all but facilitates more on girls, orphans, and children in extreme poverty and need special care.
On March 27, 2012, Gasol launched and narrated in 3 languages (English, Spanish, and Catalonian) a storybook app called, "Give A Day". The app promotes child rights and hopes to raise funds for UNICEF programs.
The story revolves around 2 children who come from different backgrounds but emphasizes the value of friendship, cooperation, and the importance of a fair world to live in for children.
The app is available for iPhone, iPad, and Android devices.
For more info on the app, visit myplaytales.com.
For more info on UNICEF, visit www.unicefusa.org.
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First off, I'd like to congratulate Magic Johnson for becoming the new owner of the Dodgers. Hopefully, things can finally head on the right direction for that franchise after that entire Frank McCourt circus.
And speaking of heading on the right direction, the Lakers don't seem to be too concerned about where they at right now and where they need to be in time for the playoffs.
Most of the media and fans believed that having a new point guard will answer a lot of their problems, but as we're still seeing, the acquisition of Ramon Sessions was only the tip of the iceberg in rectifiying what's been plaguing the team since the start of the season.
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The Lakers (23-14) are still undefeated since the All-Star break even after facing the team most people believe will win the title this season last Sunday. With his mask on, Kobe Bryant has been playing like a superhero for the Lakers and is playing his best basketball of the season the past 3 games.
But all of those games came from within the walls of Staples Center. We all know the purple and gold are one of the top teams at home but are also one of the most disappointing when they switch to their other jersey. They're facing a 3-game road trip starting at The Palace of Auburn Hills tonight and ending at the Target Center on Friday.
The Detroit Pistons (12-26) hasn't had much to celebrate for years and this season is no exception. They're a team with no star or even a top-20 scorer. Their best shot blocker is a 6' 7" 260-pound forward who is averaging .78 blocks per game. They do have one of the best defender this league has ever seen in the past 20 years in Tayshaun Prince and a 7-year veteran guard who is a career 16.7 PPG at 43.5% shooting in Ben Gordon. But stack them against the other starters in the NBA, you could see why winning is hard to come by in Detroit.
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The media may have immersed themselves in this rhetoric that this game was going to be a payback game for Kobe Bryant and the Lakers (23-14), but this is nothing more than a gut check for a team many think has passed its glory days as champions or even title contenders.
Kobe's 18-point first quarter performance may have carried a message to Dwyane Wade that a broken nose isn't enough to stop him. In fact, Bryant probably doesn't completely hate the idea of wearing that "sauna"-hot mask for who knows how long since he's averaging 34 points on 54.3% shooting since becoming "The Masked Mamba".
His offense has been sharper. Before the All-Star game, Kobe allowed the defense dictate where and how he takes his shot way too often. Since then, Bryant has been reading the defense a lot better and has been more creative in when he takes his shots. That adjustment has been throwing off the opposing defense and even made Shane Battier, an excellent defender, look helpless.
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