Lakers retain enough of the Christmas spirit

Although lacking the fever pitch of Dec. 25 win over Celtics, they avoid a letdown to easily defeat Warriors.

So, there was no letdown by the Lakers. Instead, they forged ahead, leaving behind the hyped Christmas Day game against the NBA champion Celtics, living in the now and not Thursday's big-time win over Boston. The plan was for the Lakers to build on the momentum of the Boston win, to jump over Golden State on Sunday night, which they did in throttling the Warriors, 130-113, at Staples Center. This was the same Warriors team that upset the Celtics on Friday night in Oakland. The Lakers took notice of that and vowed not to let it happen to...read full article

Another impressive victory for the Lakers

They do something Sunday they have rarely done this season: dominate a bad team.

We now return you to our regularly scheduled program. With all the excitement about the Christmas game, a prelude to the hoped-for Finals rematch, nobody bothered to explain what happens between now and June. The Lakers will play a lot more games, that's what will happen. With only 30 in the book, that leaves 52, 49 against teams other than Boston and Cleveland. Fittingly, the rest of the Lakers' lives started Sunday with ragtag 9-22 Golden State. In other words, the Warriors were exactly the kind of team the Lakers had been waltzing with deep into fourth quarters before getting serious enough to play hard...read full article

Sasha Vujacic gets shot at the point for Lakers

Known more for being a shooter, the guard has received more minutes running the show in the absence of Jordan Farmar.

The Lakers have a void at point guard because of an injury. In Sasha Vujacic's eyes, he is capable of filling that role. The Lakers have a need for a backup point guard because Jordan Farmar had surgery on his left knee for torn cartilage and will be out for eight weeks. Vujacic pointed out he came into the NBA as a point guard. He also pointed out how in Lakers Coach Phil Jackson's offense there is a two-guard front in which both guards can facilitate the offense. "Phil knows that I can play at that position," Vujacic said. "I really feel...read full article

Lakers vs Celtics Christmas Day Pau Gasol's Awesome 3 Point Play

Pau Gasol didn't do well in the first 3 quarters against the Celtics but made it happen in the final 3 minutes of the game when it counted the most. He scored 7 points and blocked 2 shots during those last minutes pushing the Lakers to a 92-83 victory. Watch the Lakers fans reaction.

Lakers vs Celtics Raja Rondo Injury fake?

Remember when Paul Pierce faked his injury at the NBA finals last year? When Raja Rondo got hit by Pau Gasol to the chest and fell to the floor...the fans started to boooooooo!!! Watch the reaction of the fans.

Lakers cruise past Golden State

Kobe Bryant has 31 points and Derek Fisher adds 19 to lead the way.

Kobe Bryant scored 31 points, Derek Fisher added 19 and the Lakers rolled to a 130-113 victory over the Golden State Warriors on Sunday night. There was no letdown by the Lakers after their intense Christmas Day victory over Boston in the teams' first meeting since the NBA finals last summer, won by the Celtics.

Sasha Vujacic had 17 points, Pau Gasol had 13 points, nine rebounds and seven assists, and Andrew Bynum chipped...read full article

Lakers vs Warriors Highlights

Lakers #1 Fan of the Night vs Celtics on Christmas Day

I thought I was the Lakers #1 Fan until I saw her. She was like this all night. Although we were sitting at the 300 section (What they call...Noseblead section), It wasn't that bad because she was next to us.

The Craziest Basketball Dunks

I was at the Staples Center in Los Angeles for the Christmas Game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics. During Halftime...they had a show with the best dunk team out there. They performed some crazy dunks.

Kobe’s Shot Counter

With 29 games in the books and 24 wins for the Lakers, here’s a question about Kobe Bryant: How many shots should the MVP take for the Lakers to have the best chance of winning?

It’s a tough question, because different games have completely different flows, and demand completely different things from various players. Perhaps the best way to answer it is to ask assistant coach Brian Shaw, who played with Bryant and now coaches him. We’ll get to that in a second, but the other way to shed some light on the issue is to crunch a few...read full article

Injury Report Jordan Farmar

One of the knees in question belongs to Jordan Farmar, the Lakers' backup point guard, who tore the lateral meniscus in his left knee last Friday night in Miami. Farmar twisted the knee while going in for a layup and has been unable to play since. An MRI revealed the tear, and after some opinions were shared, the decision was made to clean it up with surgery.

Each knee has a pair of menisci, lateral or towards the outside of the knee, and medial, or on the inside. The two disc shaped structures provide some stability to the knee joint, but mainly serves as soft cushioning material between the tibia and the femur that helps to absorb shock in the joint. The problem is that the material must be pliable in order to serve that purpose, so sometimes when the knee is twisted awkwardly, the tissue can tear.

There are all different kinds of meniscus tears in athletes, and just as many surgical options on how to fix them. Some players won't even feel them initially, only becoming symptomatic after months or years of chronic exposure. Obviously that's the best case scenario. Some are so small that they can just be removed (a partial menisectomy) and the frayed ends shaved down to maintain a smooth surface. Others can tear so badly that knees become locked at certain angles because the tear impedes movement of the two bones. In these cases you...read full article

Lakers' Pau Gasol tries to flex for success

Forward doesn't want to be called soft again.

Pau Gasol rocked back and forth on his giant feet, smiling, pleasant, distracted.

"You have somewhere else to be?" I said.

"After this interview, yes," he said.

"Where?" I said.

"The weight room," he said.

I gasped. I froze. I could not have been more shocked had Pau Gasol told me he...read full article

Letdown is a concern for the Lakers after beating Celtics

Lakers know that playing the Warriors won't have the same excitement, but it's still a game they need to win.

They survived the hype by playing with intensity in a much-anticipated showdown on Christmas Day on national television. Now the Lakers must move past that, move past a stirring victory over the NBA champion Celtics, move past ending Boston's 19-game winning streak. The Lakers play the Golden State Warriors tonight at Staples Center and that has to be their focus, their drive toward keeping the momentum built not only on having defeated the Celtics but on keeping their three-game winning streak alive.

"I don't know if any game ever matches just the excitement, the pomp and circumstance of Christmas afternoon," Derek Fisher admitted. "I mean, the fans were there at 1 o'clock and the game was at 2. So tomorrow nobody is going to be there at 5:30 [for a 6:30 game]. It's just different. We understand that." The Lakers can look at how the Celtics lost to the Warriors on Friday night in Oakland as an indicator of what...read full article