Magic C Howard, Lakers G Bryant lead All-Star voting

Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard and Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant continue to lead the All-Star voting for their respective conferences, the league announced Thursday. The defending slam dunk champion, Howard leads the entire league with 1,709,088 votes and is running away with the starting center spot on the Eastern Conference squad. Samuel Dalembert of the Philadelphia 76ers is a distant second with 239,089 votes. Cleveland’s LeBron James (1,521,272) and Boston’s Kevin Garnett (1,101,541) are the top...read full article

Lakers' Farmar back on the court, but just to observe

As his knee continues to heal, the guard says it has been hard to be away from basketball. Still, the Lakers guard couldn't stay away. "Being away from basketball is the hardest part," he said.
"I can't move, (but) I can watch. The faster we get the swelling out, the faster I can get to work. So anything that deters me from that is not a good idea." Jordan Farmar hasn't been seen much since undergoing arthroscopic surgery Dec. 24 to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee. He is not expected not to return to the lineup until after the All-Star break. But that doesn't mean he can't hang around the Lakers' training...read full article

Rest time is over and big tests loom for the Lakers

Lakers point guard Derek Fisher, defending against the Knicks' Nate Robinson, has averaged 39 minutes in four games without backup point guard Jordan Farmar.

It won't be an easy month for L.A., with Utah on tap tonight and New Orleans, Cleveland, Orlando, Houston and San Antonio on the horizon. The Lakers practiced Thursday, the better to prepare for an upcoming stretch of 14 games in 26 days. In other words, break time's over. Tonight's game against Utah will be only their second in eight days, a quirk in the schedule that allowed them to savor their Christmas Day victory over the Boston Celtics, among other things. But they'll have...read full article

Deal or No Deal? or should I say...Kobe or No Kobe?

I can't believe this guy took forever to answer the question. If you are a true Lakers Fan...you would not even think twice about it....or would you? What would you have done? Leave a comment.

Lakers stand firm in economic storm

So far, so good for the high-flying Los Angeles Lakers, whose impressive on-court form this season has been matched by their robust resistance to the global financial crisis. Although the U.S. recession has forced the National Basketball Association and the National Football League to cut jobs and Major League Baseball to freeze budgets, the Lakers have been remarkably unaffected. While their players have again set the standard in the Western Conference with a stirring win-loss record of 25-5, Lakers' home attendances and the number of season ticket holders for 2008-09 have held firm. "As of this point, we have not been adversely affected but we feel fortunate that this is the case," John Black, vice president of public relations for the Lakers, told Reuters. "If the current economic climate continues to worsen, at some point we would imagine it will impact us in some way, as it is doing or will do with most every other business in...read full article

Lakers Team Report Jan 1, 2009

Just how good is the Lakers' offense?

After rolling up 130 points on 51.6 percent field-goal shooting Sunday night against Golden State, the Lakers are averaging 107.3 points on 47.3 percent shooting this season. The scoring average is easily a league high (Golden State is next at 105 points per game). Kobe Bryant has heated up dramatically with his shot as 2008 has neared its end. Bryant has made at least 50 percent of his field-goal attempts in six of the Lakers' past seven games. He is now at 47.3 percent field-goal shooting on the season—and scoring 26.3 points per game. "Kobe now has a grasp on the game (after reaching the NBA Finals last season) like no other player, and he controls it when he wants to," Golden State coach Don Nelson said...read full article