Opening pre season tonight

The Utah Jazz brought some serious mettle to the 2008 Western Conference Semis.

After L.A. opened the series with two double-digit home wins, the Jazz responded by taking games three and four in Salt Lake City before dropping the fifth game back in Los Angeles. Ultimately, Kobe Bryant (34 points, six dimes) and Co. closed Utah’s playoff door with a 108-105 victory in Game Six in Utah, as the league MVP pushed L.A. past fellow Olympians Deron Williams, Carlos Boozer and Andrei Kirilenko (don’t forget the Russians!).

On Tuesday night at the Honda Center – you know, the Pond – in Anaheim, the Lakers are sure to get an equally gritty, equally tough game.

Or … Not. It’s preseason game No. 1, after all.

The Lakers might just as easily be playing the Harlem Globetrotters, or better yet, the Washington Nationals. Wins and losses in the preseason – particularly in the early stages – mean approximately as much as staged arguments between Heidi and Spencer on “The Hills.” ...read full article

Woman charged with stalking Lakers' Luke Walton

Stacy Elizabeth Beshear is accused of following Walton to practice and his home.

An El Segundo woman has been charged with one misdemeanor count for stalking Los Angeles Lakers forward Luke Walton at the team's practice facility in El Segundo and at his Manhattan Beach home.

Stacy Elizabeth Beshear, 34, was arrested Sept. 18 and appeared in Torrance Superior Court on Sept. 22 for arraignment and was released, Sgt. Steve Tobias of the Manhattan Beach Police Dept. said today.

Walton told police last year that Beshear was harassing him in November and December.

"She had been following him to his practice site and following him home and repeatedly asking him to sign basketballs after he'd already done so," Tobias said. "At one point, she got upset and was taking a Sharpie pen to his vehicle after he refused to sign a soccer ball."

Manhattan Beach police then met with Beshear, and she stopped what she was doing...read full article

Fewer minutes are almost a guarantee for Lakers

The small forward position is particularly crowded, with Kobe Bryant moving over for now to join Trevor Ariza, Vladimir Radmanovic and Luke Walton.

It's not a bad problem, but, well, it's definitely lingering there for the Lakers -- too many players fighting for too few minutes.

There's a logjam at small forward, especially since Kobe Bryant shifted there from shooting guard to make room for Lamar Odom's move to the backcourt.

Even if Bryant played less than 38.9 minutes a game (his average last season), it would be hard to squeeze enough time out of the position for Trevor Ariza, Vladimir Radmanovic and Luke Walton.

"As far as I've heard from the coaches, everybody is going to be playing shorter minutes," Radmanovic said. "So, we have to prepare mentally."

Walton averaged 7.2 points in 23.4 minutes a game last season. Ariza averaged 6.5 points and 18 minutes a game, and Radmanovic averaged 8.4 points and 22.8 minutes.  Walton has been sidelined while recovering from off-season ankle surgery and Radmanovic hasn't shown...read full article

Lakers center Chris Mihm is back healthy

After three surgeries and countless frustrating moments because of right ankle problems, he says he’s fit and ‘playing above the rim again.

There was a time when Chris Mihm was the Lakers' starting center, when he was athletic and mobile.

That was three years, three surgeries and countless frustrating moments ago.
Mihm is back healthy, his surgically repaired right ankle no longer an issue.

"I've been running around with a smile on my face," Mihm said. "That hasn't happened in two years."

Mihm, 29, missed the 2006-07 season and has played in just 82 games the last three seasons.

He twice had surgery on his right ankle, one reconstructive. He had surgery on his right heel. He underwent three weekly sonar-wave treatments last season and still felt persistent...read full article

Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol get acquainted

Pau Gasol doesn't smile blissfully on the way to work every day. He swears it's true.

The veteran forward-center is experiencing his first training camp with the Lakers after six and a half seasons in Memphis.

Preseason predictions have the Grizzlies near the bottom of the Western Conference, again. The Lakers, on the other hand, are the popular choice to win the West, if not the NBA Finals.

Not that Gasol is celebrating.

"Probably I did last year for the first month or so [after the trade], but I'm a guy that I always look forward no matter what, no matter how good things are, no matter how bad things are," he said.

His midseason acquisition energized the Lakers and helped them get through the rough-and-rumble West in the playoffs. He never played with Andrew Bynum until now. He likes what he sees.

"We're starting to develop our relationship on the court," Gasol said. "He's a young, talented man with a lot of potential. Hopefully he'll be able to explode this year and be able to produce a lot and...read full article

Lakers' Trevor Ariza is staying out of the storm

He's sidestepping the controversy caused by Coach Phil Jackson's comment that the former Orlando player could start in place of Lamar Odom.  

Quietly, Trevor Ariza stayed away from the storm created when Lakers Coach Phil Jackson said last week that Ariza could start this season at small forward in place of Lamar Odom.

While Odom voiced his unhappiness during the first two days of training camp over the possibility of being a reserve player, Ariza has gone about his business of playing basketball, leaving the melodrama to Odom and Jackson.

Whether he's a starter, sixth man or the last player off the bench, Ariza just wants to contribute.

"I haven't had no conversation with Phil about that," Ariza said. "I really don't care. I'm here to play basketball. Whether I start, come off the bench, whatever role I play, that's what I'm going to do. I'm not going to stress over it. L.O. is a great player too."

Jackson suggested the starting lineup could change if the big frontline...read full story.

"It's time to go now." -Kobe Bryant

Several Lakers said today they are still bitter about losing the NBA championship in June to the Boston Celtics.

Kobe Bryant viewed it as lessons to be learned.

His team lost, 131-92, in Game 6 of the NBA Finals, which was close to being the most one-sided game in Finals history. His team also blew a 24-point lead in Game 4, which was the biggest comeback in Finals history since Elias Sports Bureau became the NBA's official keeper of statistics in the 1970-71 season.

"It was a bad taste," Bryant said. "But at the same time, it was like 'We got there.' Everybody knows that we had a lot of guys that missed a lot of games during the year. We shuffled lineups around the place. We missed our key guy to provide our defensive anchor. It is disappointing, but it was a great experience for my guys. It's time to go now."...read full story

Andrew Bynum wasn't a natural selection for Lakers

The best of times were a memory and the worst of times had just begun in the spring of 2005 when the Lakers drafted 17-year-old Andrew Bynum out of high school in what seemed the maraschino cherry on the sundae of their dysfunction.

Dysfunction was a popular word around them after eight years of Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, but those now seemed like the good old days.

O'Neal was gone. Jerry West was gone. Chick Hearn was gone.

Rudy Tomjanovich, hired to replace Phil Jackson, had come and gone, fleeing within months to be replaced by . . . Jackson, who had been gone but was back.

Owner Jerry Buss, who had let Jackson go and was obliged to rehire him, seemed out of touch, musing that his 34-48 team could be in the Western Conference finals in "a couple of years."

In fact, Buss was more detached than ever, involving his son Jim in decisions, which, as far as Lakers fans were concerned, was like Jed Clampett turning the Beverly Hillbillies over to nephew Jethro.

The real heat was on General Manager Mitch Kupchak, whose challenge -- build a dynasty from the ashes of the old one -- was the NBA equivalent of "Mission: Impossible."...read full article

Change in store for Kobe and Lamar

Phil Jackson says he plans to reduce the 30-year-old Bryant's minutes this season, and suggests Odom could end up coming off the bench if he struggles at small forward spot.

Phil Jackson looked loose and relaxed, having let the sting of last season's championship failure roll off his back and disappear into the waters of the Flathead River during an off-season spent at his Montana home.

The Lakers' coach, who turned 63 last week, met with reporters for almost half an hour Friday, touching on Andrew Bynum's health, possible reductions in Kobe Bryant's playing time and a front court that might or might not include Lamar Odom as a starter.

Bryant also spoke briefly with a handful of reporters in the players' parking lot at the team training facility. He smiled a lot and seemed upbeat while detailing why he skipped surgery that would have required a 12-week recovery period for a torn ligament in his right pinkie.

"That was too long," he said, splaying out his fingers and saying that enough scar tissue had built up in the pinkie to make it less dicey to play with this season. "It was riskier last season than it is now."

Between Bryant's...read full article

Phil Jackson talking to Media

We'll have some video later in the afternoon, but in the meantime you can kill the rest of your Friday with some quotes from Phil Jackson, who met with the media in El Segundo this afternoon ahead of Monday's media day. Clean-shaven and (relatively) spry, PJ seemed eager to get going on what looks to be an interesting season. Not that he was dancing a jig or anything, but that's not really how he rolls.

You can watch casually once the film is up ... until then, we'll all have to make do with the printed word. A lot of ground is covered, but given the serious jones for anything meaty, I figure you can absorb it. Some excerpts:

On upcoming season:
"We're excited about our year. A lot of the same players back again. There haven't been a whole lot of changes. Obviously Andrew (Bynum) coming back is a change, is a difference. We think that we're healthy coming into this training camp. Obviously we have some things that are going on -- Luke is still recovering a little bit from an operation, he'll be a little slow -- but for the most part we're relatively healthy, as opposed to last year, when we had players who couldn't compete right away. We think some of our players have played probably a little too much basketball this summer, with Kobe and Pau (at the Olympics), so we'll generate a camp around their limited work, at least this first week."

On Kobe's deciding against surgery on the torn ligament in his pinkie finger:
"I think it was a good idea. Regardless of the correction that might have been done by the surgery, he's still susceptible (to injury). I don't think there's any more of a risk than there would be if he had surgery, then got his finger caught in a jersey again. There's the same risk factor. There's probably going to be a little less strength there, or whatever, but he's going to be fine. He's played all summer with it. I wasn't happy with the way he shot the ball particularly, but I think he's adjusted to all that."

read full article

DJ Mbenga's 2 year deal

Good info from Eric Pincus at Hoopsworld regarding the contract of DJ Mbenga.  Turns out it's a two-year deal, with the first being guaranteed.

"... He'll make $880,658 this season, fully guaranteed.  He's also under contract for next season, although his $959,111 is either partially or non-guaranteed.

At a little over $880, Mbenga is getting more than the league minimum, which means the Lakers lose out on a league payment that goes to teams for players signed with the veteran's minimum (a sliding scale based on the number of years).  The team used their Non-Bird Exception to retain Mbenga, leaving the Lakers with their unused Mid-Level and Bi-Annual Exceptions.

With both Sun Yue and Mbenga locked in for the year -- and with forward Josh Powell guaranteed $200,000 of his deal -- the Lakers have 14 players who are all but set in stone for opening night..."

That leaves one open roster spot, should the Lakers decide to...read full article

Sun Yue has Mononucleusis

Sun Yue tested positive for mononucleosis, delaying the start of his Lakers career for an indefinite period.

Sun, 22, appeared to be in good spirits while meeting with media members Wednesday afternoon but was taken to a Los Angeles-area hospital a few hours later. He will not be ready for the start of training camp Tuesday, and there is no date for his return."It varies on the severity of it and the individual," Lakers spokesman John Black said Thursday. "We simply don't know."

Sun skipped an unofficial practice with Lakers teammates Wednesday morning because he felt lethargic, which he attributed to jet lag after arriving in Los Angeles from China a few days earlier.

Mononucleosis can require several weeks of recovery, if not longer. Sun will rest this weekend and visit team doctor John Moe on Monday, Black said. If Sun is not considered contagious at that time, he can sit in on...read full article