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Bench Warmer
The Lakers have a growing list of injured players. They have concerns that their young big man hasn't recaptured the form that made him so promising a year ago. They have lapses when they forget what it takes for them to be effective. They also have the best record in the NBA.
And so, almost accidentally, the Lakers (27-5) claimed the top spot by beating Portland, 100-86, Sunday night after the Celtics (29-6) lost at New York and the Cavaliers (27-6) lost at Washington. Avoiding those losses to the bad teams is one of the ways the Lakers got here. They're 11-2 against sub-.500 teams (the exceptions coming at Indiana and Sacramento). They're also 18-1 at home. So that's the basic part of the formula: win at home, beat the bad teams.
What makes the Lakers look championship-worthy is when they remember to play defense, as they did in the third quarter Sunday, a 12-minute stretch in which they forced five turnovers, held Portland to 16 points on 36 percent shooting, and turned a one-point halftime lead into a 15-point advantage. Those type of quarters, these types of games are there for them whenever they want it. The greatest challenge over the course of this schedule-friendly month that features 11 games in Staples Center and only one trip out of the state (a back-to-back set in Houston and San Antonio next week) could be to stay focused on basketball.
Before the game Sunday, Phil Jackson spent a good portion of his regular television interview discussing tacos. Afterward, the only time Bryant's expression changed was when he talked about his Philadelphia Eagles' playoff victory, and his best description of the Lakers was a NASCAR-themed metaphor.
"We've got plenty more gears to go to," Bryant said. "Plenty more. I haven't put it in third gear yet."
One reason the Lakers are winning without flooring the gas pedal is Bryant's efficiency. He is making 48 percent of his shots, on pace for a career-best. He has shot 57 percent or better in three of his past four games. He scored 26 points on 19 field-goal attempts Sunday and 40 on 23 shots Friday against Utah. And he's still third in the league at scoring at 26.8 points per despite playing his fewest minutes per game (35.4) since he was a reserve in his second year.
It helps that Pau Gasol is such a reliable scoring option and the Lakers' depth usually finds enough other scoring parts.
"They are a good group," Portland Coach Nate McMillan said. "They are on a mission. They definitely know what they need to do to win."
It's simply a matter of application.
"That's always our Achilles heel, how we play defense," Lamar Odom said. "Tonight in the second half we were able to do that."
An Achilles heel injury seems like the inevitable next injury for the Lakers. Backup point guard Jordan Farmar has a torn meniscus in his left knee and will probably be out until February. Jackson, who planned to pace the 34-year-old starter Derek Fisher throughout the season, worries that Fisher will log too many minutes in Farmar's absence, such as the 42 he played chasing Utah's Deron Williams on Friday night. Luke Walton, who was recently plucked from the end of the bench to replace Vladimir Radmanovic in the starting lineup, was diagnosed with sesamoiditis (an inflammation of the tendons leading to the big toe in his right foot) and will see a doctor on Monday.
"Injuries are going to happen," Odom said. "That's why it's important to be a deep team."
That's the Lakers' greatest asset. And it's made their flaws seem minimal. Bryant hasn't shown quite the same explosive leap he used to. He can't be counted on to physically overwhelm opponents anymore. And the Lakers' haven't exactly dominated with their huge frontline of Gasol and Andrew Bynum. Bynum's scoring, rebounding and shooting numbers are down from where they were before he was injured last season and there's consternation in the Laker crowd whenever Bynum misses a shot.
But the only thing that's really bothered the Lakers is their inconsistency.
They let an early 20-point lead against Utah sleep away to three points on Friday. And they fell behind Portland 18-9 Sunday in a bumbling first quarter in which they committed nine turnovers. But Portland, playing without star Brandon Roy, couldn't sustain its offense or contain the Lakers, who kept coming at them.
And their greatest concern doesn't seem to be scoring runs or injuries. It's tacos.
A fast-food chain gives away coupons for free tacos to everyone in attendance if the Lakers win and hold the opponent below 100 points.
"Everybody loves tacos," Bryant said in an oncourt interview after the game.
On the pregame show, Jackson said he actually prefers the tacos made by a local spot not too far from Staples Center. When I told him those tacos were overrated, he replied, "Aren't they all? A taco's a taco."
And a win is a win. At the end of the first weekend in January, 40 percent of the way through the season, the Lakers have racked them up at a better rate than anyone.
