Two left feet...

San Antonio, TX

In the second night of a back to back road series, the Lakers lost to the Spurs, and failed to land the pretty girl at the Texas Two Step dance. The Lakers (31-7) also lost the title of best record in the NBA. Lebron James and company wear that crown now (30-6). Los Angeles had been rolling, albeit on flat tires, to the tune of a four game win streak, and 10 of their last 11. All that came to an end when Roger Mason converted on a three point play to put the Spurs up for good. Mason got the ball on the baseline with 10 seconds left and hit a huge jumper while being fouled by Derek Fisher. Just previous to that, Kobe Bryant hit a monstrous three pointer from way out with 12 seconds left in the game. That shot, at the time, appeared to be another case of Kobe playing hero, as the NBA's best closer. Unfortunately for Los Angeles, a Trevor Ariza travel call with .08 seconds left sealed their fate, and made the final score official. 112-111 San Antonio Spurs victorious, the Lakers seventh loss of the season. Kobe was the games high scorer with 29, Ginobli had 27. Gasol and Bynum scored 21 and 18 for Los Angeles. The Spurs got 20 out of both Tim Duncan and Tony Parker. Roger Mason, who got the game winner, also finished with 18.  Both teams shot well from the floor, finishing with an identical 57% from the floor. "Both teams shot the heck out of the ball," said Bryant. "I mean, it's tough to lose a game like that."

This matchup historically has provided great games. In the past decade the Spurs or Lakers have been the Western Conference Champs 9 times, and the two teams have combined for 7 of the last 10 NBA titles. Manu Ginobli commented on the importance of the matchup.

"It tells you where you stand," said Manu. "...It makes you see the mistakes you made, how far you are from them and stuff like that. I wish we played them 10 times (per season)."

Take note he did say, 'how far from them', good to see the Lakers are still the team to beat at least in opposing players heads. That mental advantage can be a huge confidence builder or buster when the team goes on a winning streak.

The Lakers opened the season 7-0, and were doing it in fine fashion. Playing defense, playing as a team, playing like champions should. Since then, Los Angeles who leads the league in scoring (107 ppg), has given up on playing defense. The old Lakers team, that started the year holding  opponents to under 87 points per contest is gone. This new look team is just your average middle of the pack team. Ranking 16th in the NBA, Los Angeles has now given up 102.3 points over the last 31 games. A few of the other early season contenders, Cleveland, Boston, and San Antonio all rank within the top 5 in team defense. I feel like a broken record, but this is still something the Lakers will need to fix if they want to see that parade run down Figueroa. I know myself personally,  would love to be downtown covering that event.

Injuries have really hit the Lakers hard this month. In a span of five weeks, the Lakers have lost 4 players to injury. Jordan Farmar might have gotten the worst of it, he suffered a torn MCL that required surgery. Luke Walton is out with sesamoiditis, a fancy way of saying foot pain. Lamar Odom, who played the last two, missed time to a bone bruise in his knee, and Sasha Vujacic missed the recent road trip with back spasms. These injuries have had an array of affects for the Lakers. On the upside, bench players like Trevor Ariza, Josh Powell, and Sun Yue are getting lots of extra playing time. Something that should pay dividends when the Lakers reach the playoffs when a deep bench is really needed. The bad, besides just messing with the rotation and not having top talent on the floor, is also extended playing time. Both Kobe and Fisher are averaging over 31 minutes per game. At 31 and 34 respectively, this is a slight concern. The season is a long marathon race to the finals after all. I guess we shouldn't stress out about Bryant too much, he is known throughout the association as being the most well conditioned and dedicated player. Derek Fisher has stepped up like a true veteran himself, always dismissing any notions that he might be too tired to keep logging long minutes. Hopefully with the return of a few key components, the Lakers can find their rhythm and defensive form again. Defense has led to a bunch of blowout games in which the starters can sit out large portions of the final quarter. 

Phil Jackson's team now heads to Orlando to play Dwight Howard and the Magic. Ever since the two teams last played each other, a 134-94 Lakers loss on 12/23/8, Andrew Bynum has stepped up his game. Bynum played only 9 minutes in that contest with early foul trouble, and watched Howard record a double-double in the win, after getting into some foul trouble himself. Bynum has decided to start listening to his personal tutor, and NBA legend, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar again and the proof is in the pudding. Bynum had back to back 20+ point games against the Pacers and Heat, the first time he's accomplished that in his career. Andrew is also keeping his composure, which allows him to stay on the floor, and the results are starting to come. Look for him to be much more aggressive in Fridays game against the Magic.

Looking ahead, the Lakers play the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday, take off inauguration day, and they day after. Well, I suppose LA does play the Clippers on Wednesday, but that should be like a day off. In the NBA, you never know though, and that's why they play the games.