The Mavericks retain the top spot but the Suns are right there waiting to leapfrog them to the top.  The Lakers win four straight despite playing through significant injuries.  The Spurs slump unexpectedly while the Rockets hold their own with Yao Ming.  Where the rankings get tricky is at the top of the Eastern Conference where the separation between the Pistons, Wizards, Bulls and Magic is hard to quantify.  The Cavs and Magic overcome difficult stretches to have perfect weeks.  The scorching hot Bulls lose two of three but then wax the Pistons.  Give it a week or two and the pecking order in the East will become more evident.

What a week for the Lakers. With Kwame going down things seemed to be going down fast. The Lakers center is now out with a severely sprained ankle while Forward Lamar Odom is still out with a sprained knee… Doesn’t matter. Including the game Kwame played 17 minuets in, the Lakers are 4-0. They have beat the 76ers, Kings in heart pumping fashion, Nuggets, and the Mavericks in a thriller. The 76ers are in disarray, but the Kings are always tough on their home floor. The Nuggets aren’t playing particularly well with their newest aquisition Iverson, but they are still dangerous none the less. Dallas Mavericks… Do i have to say more? The best team in the league went down to a injury plauged Laker squad led by the recently giving Kobe Bryant with the help of Sasha Vujacic.

Kobe is having himself quite a week averaging 27.75 PPG, 7.75 RPG, and 7.75 APG while shooting 51% from the field. He is front runner for player of the week. But most importantly he showed why he is the number one player in the NBA this last thursday against the Kings. he showed the power to turn it on and off at will. With the Lakers up by 21, minuets into the 4th quarter, the Kings made their run and took the lead late in the game. Then it was Kobe time. He single handedly took the game over scoring 9 points and grabbing 4 rebounds in overtime to win the game for the Lakers.

But this team isn’t the old Kobe show it used to be. It has been a total team effort with someone different stepping up each game.

76ers game: Everyone on the team not injured scored atleast 2 points
Kings game: Clutch play of Smush and Radmanovic send the game to overtime
Nuggets game: Smush had 23 points, 19 from Bynum, 18 from Luke, 16 from Cook, and 16 from Mo Evans
Mavaricks game: 21 points from Luke Walton and 29 points combined from the most unlikely sources, Turiaf and Sasha ( Sasha, 16 Turiaf, 13)

With the team play of the Lakers coming at the perfect time with a tough task ahead. They get Houston fro the back end of a back to back, Magic, Miami likely with Shaq, and at the Spurs and at the Mavaricks back to back.

This month can very well determine if the Lakers have that 50 win season they so desperately want, or even more important, put themselves in position to be a top 4 seed team in the extremely tough Western Conference.

 -Written by Smush

Los Angeles 101, Dallas 98

SAN ANTONIO, Jan. 7 (AP) — Despite his limited playing time and a sub-par shooting percentage, Sasha Vujacic says he’s never lacking in confidence.

And that’s a good thing, since a shooter must have that kind of mentality.

Vujacic had his best game in three NBA seasons Sunday night, scoring a career-high 16 points, including a go-ahead 3-pointer with 28.5 seconds left, and the Los Angeles Lakers beat Dallas 101-98 to snap the Mavericks’ 13-game winning streak.

Vujacic missed all five shots he attempted Friday night against Denver, dropping his shooting percentage to 37.4 percent, including 31 percent from 3-point range. He shot 6-of-7 against the Mavericks, including 4-of-5 from beyond the arc.

“Always, always,” the 22-year-old Slovenian guard said regarding his confidence level. “My teammates found me for open shots. I just wanted to take the responsibility.

“It feels great. The beginning of the season, I didn’t start well. I just want to be more consistent, show the coach he can trust me.”

Vujacic entered averaging 3.7 points in 11.4 minutes while playing in 27 of the Lakers’ 32 games. He played the entire fourth quarter and a total of 19 minutes against the Mavericks.

“I’m really happy for Sasha, how well he played tonight,” said Kobe Bryant, who scored 14 of his 26 points in the final period and also had eight rebounds and six assists.

“He comes in off the bench and always plays extremely well defensively, even when he’s not shooting well,” Bryant said. “I’m proud of him. He’s taken his lumps here, the fans have been pretty hard on him. He’s a tough kid, he doesn’t back down, he’s not lacking in confidence.”

Luke Walton had 21 points and six assists for the Lakers, who presented coach Phil Jackson with his 900th victory.

“It’s a compliment to all the players I’ve had – the great players, the great teams and the great runs that we’ve had,” Jackson said. “It’s become a game in which us elderly guys are now coaching, which was an age that coaches didn’t extend themselves into when I was a player. It says something about the longevity of coaches now.”

The 61-year-old Jackson ranks ninth on the NBA’s all-time wins list, and became the fastest to reach 900, doing so in 1,264 games. Former Lakers coach Pat Riley accomplished the feat in 1,278 games.

“Nine hundred wins is remarkable,” Bryant said. “I can’t even fathom 900 games. It was special.”

Dirk Nowitzki’s jumper with 42 seconds remaining gave the Mavericks a 98-97 lead, but Vujacic’s long jumper put the Lakers ahead for good. A free throw by Walton with 10.6 seconds to play completed the scoring.

Devean George, a former Laker, missed a potential game-tying 3-pointer with 4 seconds left, and Bryant got the rebound. Time expired before the Mavericks were able to commit a foul.

The win was the fourth straight for the Lakers (23-11), who played without injured starters Lamar Odom and Kwame Brown. The loss was just the fourth in the last 31 games for the Mavericks, whose 27-8 record is the best in the NBA.

Nowitzki had 29 points and 13 rebounds, Josh Howard had 20 points and nine rebounds, and Jerry Stackhouse scored 14 for the Mavericks.

“Kobe basically took over the game, had some great shots,” Nowitzki said. “But really, I think it was the Vujacic guy. Those were points you don’t expect. He was hot – he made big 3s for them.”

The Lakers shot 39-of-71 (55 percent) to 38-of-90 (42 percent) for the Mavericks.

“We didn’t have our normal fourth quarter,” said Mavericks coach Avery Johnson, whose team was outscored 33-21 in the final period. “Everything we tried on them in the fourth quarter didn’t work.”

Two free throws by Jason Terry with 1:29 to play gave the Mavericks a 96-92 lead, but Bryant made a three-point play with 1:21 left and two free throws with 55.9 seconds to go, giving the Lakers their first lead since the second quarter.

Nowitzki put the Mavericks on top one final time before Vujacic came through, taking a pass from Walton.

Notes: The Mavericks, who won 12 straight games after losing their first four, are the 20th team in NBA history with two double-figure winning streaks in the same season. The only team to accomplish the feat faster was the 1971-72 Lakers, who had a pair of 11-game streaks in their first 31 games. … Odom sprained a ligament in his right knee Dec. 12, and Brown sprained his right ankle Dec. 31. Both are expected to be sidelined at least two more weeks. … The Mavericks’ latest winning streak began Dec. 13, when they beat the Lakers 110-101 in Dallas. That was the last time the Mavericks allowed an opponent to reach 100 points until this game. … The Mavericks are 31-2 during the past two seasons when Howard scores at least 20. … George played his first seven NBA seasons with the Lakers before signing with Dallas last summer. He scored nine points in 20 minutes.

http://www.nba.com/games/20070107/DALLAL/recap.html?rss=true

Los Angeles 123, Denver 104

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 5 (AP) — Kobe Bryant had his worst offensive performance of the season, and the Los Angeles Lakers still won easily.

Bryant was generous in sharing the ball with his teammates, helping five of them score in double figures of a 123-104 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Friday night.

“It’s about being a big brother, giving them encouragement, but also getting on top of them at times,” said Bryant, who had eight points on 2-of-9 shooting after averaging 45 points in his previous four games.

Smush Parker led the Lakers with 23 points. Andrew Bynum added 19 points, 10 rebounds and a career-high six blocked shots. Luke Walton had 18 points, and Brian Cook and Maurice Evans had 16 points each.

“I got a bunch of layups,” Parker said. “I was able to get to the front of the rim on a number of occasions. I give it to my teammates. They made the extra passes and I was the recipient.”

It was the Lakers’ eighth consecutive victory over Denver at Staples Center, where they are 13-1 against the Nuggets.

The Lakers had a season-high 39 assists, with Bryant getting 10 and Walton eight in coach Phil Jackson’s 899th career victory.

“Kobe facilitated a lot of things,” Jackson said. “I know there’s some people out there that wanted him to score. But he did the right thing in the type of game that was being played. I think he felt very comfortable with that, too.”

Bryant spent the fourth quarter on the bench with both knees heavily wrapped. During a timeout, he moved over to joke with injured Lamar Odom after laughing it up with Parker, Cook and Walton.

Earl Boykins scored 24 points for the Nuggets, who dropped their fourth in a row. Allen Iverson had 16 points – he was averaging 28.8 coming in – in his seventh game since being traded from Philadelphia.

Seeing Iverson in a blue jersey startled Bryant.

“I told him he looked weird,” he said.

Marcus Camby added 14 points and 12 rebounds, Nene had 14 points and Reggie Evans had 13 rebounds for the Nuggets.

“They jumped right on us from the beginning. We just couldn’t recover from it,” Iverson said. “They beat us all throughout the game. We couldn’t stop them and we struggled on offense again.”

Just as Bryant didn’t expend any energy in the fourth, the crowd didn’t either, with sections of seats emptying out. The outcome was never in doubt after the Lakers led by 13 points at halftime.

Parker did most of his damage in the first half, when he had 20 points and the Lakers shot 52 percent.

Bryant had two points on free throws in the first half and dished out nine of his 10 assists.

“They’re the best passing team in the NBA and they proved it,” Denver coach George Karl said.

Los Angeles scored 15 consecutive points – with Parker, Bynum, Cook and Walton contributing – in the opening quarter to lead 21-9.

“When you let them get off to a confident start in their own building, it’s kind of stupid,” Karl said. “We never got a defensive dimension in the game.”

The Nuggets closed within seven to start the second quarter, but the Lakers stretched their lead to 14 on back-to-back 3-pointers by Maurice Evans and Jordan Farmar.

Los Angeles was up 104-87 heading into the fourth.

Notes: Bryant’s previous season low was 15 points against Seattle on Nov. 3. … Parker finished one point shy of his career high. … Jackson said Odom probably wouldn’t go on the Lakers’ road trip beginning Tuesday at Memphis. He’ll stay behind to continue therapy on his sprained right knee. … Denver fell to 3-5 since the NBA suspended Carmelo Anthony and J.R. Smith for fighting with the New York Knicks. … Former USC star and current Arizona Cardinals quarterback Matt Leinart attended the game wearing Bryant’s No. 24 jersey.

http://www.nba.com/games/20070105/DENLAL/recap.html?rss=true

SACRAMENTO, Calif.(AP) — With 4 seconds left in regulation and the Los Angeles Lakers down by two, the Sacramento Kings were sure Kobe Bryant would take the last shot.

“Everyone expected him to take that shot,” Sacramento guard John Salmons said. “No one thought he would pass it.”

Yet that’s just what Bryant did, feeding Smush Parker for a game-tying layup with 0.1 seconds left and helping the Los Angeles Lakers go on to a 132-128 overtime victory Thursday night.

“We should be able to get layups every time if they double Kobe at halfcourt,” Luke Walton said. “Kobe did a great job trusting Smush and Smush made a pretty tough layup.”

Bryant overcame a scoreless opening 16 minutes to finish with 42 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists to help the Lakers survive after blowing a 21-point lead.

Parker’s basket capped a Lakers’ comeback from four points down in the final 6.7 seconds, providing a dramatic finish in the first meeting of the season between these two fierce California rivals.

“It’s Arco, man. Weird things happen here,” Bryant said. “Inevitably, every time we play here we wind up having a great game.”

Bryant scored on the opening possession of overtime to give the Lakers the lead for good and added a fallaway baseline jumper with 1:03 left in overtime gave the Lakers a 126-121 lead.

Mike Bibby’s 3-pointer cut it to one with 11.7 seconds left, but Bryant made five free throws down the stretch to ice it.

Brian Cook added 26 points, Walton scored 16 and Andrew Bynum had 15 points and 11 rebounds as the Lakers won their first game since center Kwame Brown went down with an ankle injury.

Sacramento was also without its starting center, as Brad Miller missed the game with flu-like symptoms. Bibby led the Kings with 38 points, Kevin Martin had 21 and Ron Artest added 19.

Sacramento trailed by 21 points in the third quarter, but Bibby’s 3-pointer gave the Kings a 114-112 lead with 23 seconds remaining in regulation.

After Bryant missed a jumper in the lane at the other end, John Salmons hit two free throws with 6.7 seconds remaining to make it a four-point game. Sasha Vujacic answered with a 3-pointer with 4.7 seconds to go.

Bibby was fouled before the inbounds play but missed the free throw. Sacramento kept the ball and Martin made one of two at the line with 4.0 seconds left. The Lakers inbounded to Bryant, who drew the double team before feeding Parker for the game-tying layup.

“As soon as I crossed halfcourt they started doubling,” Bryant said. “It was something we talked about. I caught the ball at the top, squared up and saw Bibby was hedging. Smush cut right behind him.”

The comeback wouldn’t have been possible without the missed free throws by Bibby and Martin. Sacramento set a team record with 58 foul shots, but missed 15 of them.

“It hurts, especially when free-throw shooters like me and Kevin don’t come through,” Bibby said. “We make those free throws and it’s over.”

The Lakers were held to one field goal in an eight-minute span in the third quarter to let the Kings back into the game. Bryant then keyed a 9-2 run early in the fourth with a 3-pointer and a dunk, and the Lakers made it 106-94 on Bryant’s basket with 6:18 to go. Sacramento scored the next nine points to set up the exciting finish.

After a scoreless first quarter when he took only one shot, Bryant heated up in the second quarter. His first point came on a free throw with 8:52 left in the half. He made two more foul shots the next trip and then scored his first basket on a give-and-go layup from Vladimir Radmanovic. Bryant finished the quarter with 18 points, going 11-of-12 from the line.

The first half was played with almost no rhythm, as the teams made a constant parade to the foul line. There were 38 fouls called in the half, including 26 in a 48-minute second quarter when the teams set an Arco Arena record by going to the line 47 times.

“In the first half we embarrassed ourselves the way we came out,” Sacramento’s Corliss Williamson said. “We showed some resilience in coming back, but it was heartbreaking to lose it.”

Los Angeles broke out to a 21-8 lead midway through the opening quarter as Cook hit all six of his shots, including a 3-pointer. Bryant’s only shot of the quarter was a missed 3-pointer with 1:50 remaining. He did have four assists.

Notes: The previous Arco record for free throws in a quarter was 40 in the fourth period of a Portland-Sacramento game Jan. 20, 2004. The NBA record for free throws in a quarter is 50. … Former Lakers and Kings center Vlade Divac was in attendance. … Bryant reached the 40-point mark for the sixth time this season.

http://www.nba.com/games/20070104/LALSAC/recap.html?rss=true

 EL SEGUNDO, Calif., Jan. 2 (AP) — Los Angeles Lakers center Kwame Brown expects to be out several weeks because of a severely sprained left ankle.

He was injured Sunday night and joins Chris Mihm and Lamar Odom on the sidelines. Lakers spokesman John Black said Tuesday that Brown will be reassessed in 10 days to two weeks.

“We’ll give a target date when he’s re-evaluated,” he said. “We’re talking weeks, not days.”

Brown was treated at the Lakers’ practice facility Tuesday.

“He’s in a lot of pain,” Black said.

Mihm, out for the season, sprained his right ankle last March and has undergone surgery twice since – most recently Nov. 14. Odom sprained a knee ligament Dec. 12 and will probably be out another two to three weeks.

Brown, averaging 8.7 points and 6.6 rebounds, underwent a CT scan and MRI exam Monday, with both coming back negative for a fracture. He was injured when he blocked Andre Miller’s shot in the lane but came down on Miller’s foot in the third quarter of the Lakers’ 104-94 victory over Philadelphia. He was helped off the court.

http://www.nba.com/nba_news/Brown_070102.html?rss=true

What a night! What was expected to be a quick win for the Lakers even without their second scoring option Lamar Odom, turned out to be one of the logest games both teams had seen in a while. During the 3 hour, 20 minute playing time, the triple overtime, neither the sold out arena in Charlotte let the Lakers have it easy, nor the Bobcats themselves. What started as a 30-18 lead for the Lakers in the first quarter was quickly shifted as the Bobcats caught on and was a neck to neck game thereafter. The game also got physical as time passed and both Kobe Bryant and Gerald Wallace were fouled out in the overtimes. Shooting 22-45, Kobe Bryant scored 58 points, his third highest and 14th 50+ game. Still, Lakers couldn’t hold on to the win despite the tremendous efforts of Luke Walton who grabbed 5 steals, five assits, and 11 rebounds. It was an exceptionally dissapointing night for center Kwame Brown, who only scored 4 of 10 from the field and according to Head Coach Phil Jackson, “There was certainly some disappointment in the ability, or non-ability, of Kwame to complete plays that we thought were big plays for us. His teammates are disappointed. He just has to accept the fact that the next time he gets that chance, he doesn’t [fumble].” Phil went on to say that the players on the floor depended too much on Bryant. “I was yelling at them to run their offense and get away from that,” Jackson said. “They just seemed to be going back to him all the time.”

For the Bobcats,Emeka Okafor scored 22 two points and 25 rebounds, but the big help came from the bench from Matt Carroll who hit a career high 27 points and also 4-7 in three pointers. Of course, we can’t talk about three pointers without mentioning Kobe Bryant’s three pointer to tie the game at the end of the second overtime. The Lakers eventually ran out of fuel as they let the Bobcats have in the third overtime.
The Lakers wrapped up their 6 game road trip having won three and lost the other three. They take on the Philadelphia 76ers on New Years Eve.

-Smush

Shaquille O’Neal, recovering from knee surgery, could return to the lineup Jan. 15 against the Los Angeles Lakers when the Miami Heat complete a six-game road trip.The 34-year-old center will accompany the Heat on their Western swing beginning Friday, coach Pat Riley said. O’Neal hasn’t practiced since tearing cartilage in his left knee Nov. 12. He had surgery a week later and was then projected to be sidelined until at least late December.

O’Neal is expected to resume running and practicing soon. He estimated he’ll need a “couple of practices” to feel comfortable enough to play.

“There ain’t no way to get in great basketball shape than play basketball,” he said Monday.

Riley said O’Neal has stayed in good shape, with his weight under 330 pounds and his body fat below 13 percent.

“He has really worked to be ready,” Riley said. “Now we just want to make sure he stays back.”

The defending champions have struggled without O’Neal, who has played only four games. They’re 13-17 and third in the Southeast Division. O’Neal averaged 14.0 points and 7.5 rebounds before the injury.

The Heat host the Clippers on Wednesday and start their road trip against Phoenix on Friday.

Shaquille O’Neal, recovering from knee surgery, could return to the lineup Jan. 15 against the Los Angeles Lakers when the Miami Heat complete a six-game road trip.The 34-year-old center will accompany the Heat on their Western swing beginning Friday, coach Pat Riley said. O’Neal hasn’t practiced since tearing cartilage in his left knee Nov. 12. He had surgery a week later and was then projected to be sidelined until at least late December.

O’Neal is expected to resume running and practicing soon. He estimated he’ll need a “couple of practices” to feel comfortable enough to play.

“There ain’t no way to get in great basketball shape than play basketball,” he said Monday.

Riley said O’Neal has stayed in good shape, with his weight under 330 pounds and his body fat below 13 percent.

“He has really worked to be ready,” Riley said. “Now we just want to make sure he stays back.”

The defending champions have struggled without O’Neal, who has played only four games. They’re 13-17 and third in the Southeast Division. O’Neal averaged 14.0 points and 7.5 rebounds before the injury.

The Heat host the Clippers on Wednesday and start their road trip against Phoenix on Friday.

EL SEGUNDO – Even now that he’s back in the starting lineup, Lakers center Andrew Bynum is very much going through a learning process.

Take the opening tip-off from Friday’s game against Denver.

With Marcus Camby jumping center for the Nuggets, Bynum batted the ball twice, then pulled it into his chest. It was an instinctive reaction on the 19-year-old’s part, one that wound up giving possession to the Nuggets.

“I thought after we both were fighting for it for like five seconds that you could just catch it,” Bynum said. “I could have hit it down, and if it hit the floor, then I could have picked it up. But I didn’t know that.”

It didn’t derail Bynum from having another productive game. He posted a second consecutive double-double and is averaging 17points, 10.5rebounds, 4.5blocks and has made 13 of 15 shots since Kwame Brown was lost to an ankle injury.

“We’re pleased,” Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. “We hope that he can continue that pace. He’s shown a little initiative. The big thing is the recovery time between one game and the next. That’s real critical with a young guy like Drew.”

The difference might be as simple as getting the time to play. Bynum is averaging 22.4minutes as a starter

http://www.dailynews.com/sports/ci_4965229

Looks like LO will be out until after the All-Star break. He was supposed to come back mid-January.
Well, another hit on the Lakers. Kwame just got injured bad, and now it looks like we have to wait a little longer for some much-needed help.

Injuries have really hurt the Lakers this season. And we still have an awesome record considering. Hopefully we can play strong without all the pieces we had when we started.

By the way, Smush [whoever you are], good job by filling in. I’ve been really lazy lately.

7Goat