Been all over the place today, but I wanted to get the video highlights up and comment on Lamar Odom. This guy has been annihilating the boards, folks. 14 rips again last night. Maybe we should go big when Andrew Bynum returns, because L.O. has responded incredibly well to starting once again? Just a thought…

Video Highlights:

Derek Fisher. D-Fish! How much does that guy mean to our Lakers? Draws a charge with 20 seconds left to get the ball back, then drains a three to send the game to overtime 5 seconds later. Dude is clutch.
What’s up with Lamar Odom, by the way? My man L.O. is rebounding like the reincarnation of Rodman or something. 17 rips in this one, to go along with 12 points and 5 assists.
Pau Gasol is passing his ass off, isn’t he. 6 assists in this one, and he was strong across the board.
Then you have Luke Walton’s redunkulous +25 plus/minus [...]

I could talk about Kobe Bryant dropping 30 with 9 dimes. I’m not going to. I could talk about Pau Gasol doing his typical non-Bynum work. Not going to. I could even rave about Lamar Odom continuing his inspired play of late. Again, not going to.
What I would rather talk about is — no, not that the Warriors play defense that would even offend Mike D’Antoni — Josh Powell, Luke Walton and Trevor Ariza.
J-Peezy put up 16-7 in less than 25 minutes of burn. I think he’s the reason Chris Mihm became the Lakers seven-foot stimulas package. He just keeps [...]

Just got back from vacation, and with me getting back to blogging it’s nice to see the Lakers resume their winning ways as well. While the rest of the teams are talking trades and L.A.’s other team is punching people, the Lake Show just does its thing.
The big thing that I took away from this game is that even without a scoring eruption from any one player, the Lakers can still win. Lamar Odom led the six scorers in double figures with 15, but his 20 rips were what really impressed me. Pau Gasol’s triple-double probably was the most impressive [...]

I don’t waste my time watching the Thunder. Saw Kevin Durant once this season, and that was good enough for me. The Lakers took care of business and that’s really all there is to say here. That and, man, are Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol stepping up in Andrew Bynum’s absence.
Video Highlights:

P.S. – I just thought about how 34 from Kobe Bryant is a non-story. Love it!

If you didn’t get the title, well, then you probably have never watched Entourage and have no clue who Johnny Drama is. Sunday, the drama was in Cleveland, where Kobe Bryant’s entourage helped him take down LeBron James’ Cavs. As a result, the Cavs’ perfect home record is now history.
Kobe was limited by the flu, so he needed his teammates to step up, and step up they did. Lamar Odom might not have had the flu, but he was sick. With 28 points and 17 boards, he was the MVP of the game hands down. L.O. ripped off 15 points [...]

The Celtics-Lakers rivalry has been reforged. It’s back. Officially.
Why wasn’t it official before now? Because before Christmas day and especially before last night, the rivalry was a one-sided one. It was the bullies vs. the pansy kids. The pansy kids had the best fighter of the whole lot, but the rest of his crew was timid. The operative word being “was.”
Now the Lakers have morphed into Alice Cooper — “No More Mr. Nice Guy.” Like in A Christmas Story, the Lakers not only stood up to the bully, they beat the bullies ass on his own turf. “We’re not gonna [...]

No surgery required for Andrew Bynum’s latest knee injury, and recovery time could have him out until the playoffs. I do think he’ll be back, though, probably even before then. I’ve dislocated both of my kneecaps, and I know this is a much less severe injury than he had last season. I’ve seen guys rebound from MCL tears in way less than 8-12 weeks. I think the Lakers, more than anything, will just play it safe. He will be back to make his presence felt come playoff time.
We wish you a speedy recovery, Diaper Drew. Trust me, with knees it’s [...]

WTF? WTF? WTF?
The Bobcats? The Bobcats? After thumping the rival Spurs at home on national TV the first Sunday with no football? That. Makes. No. Sense.
Then again, this is a young team playing a long season.
But, more importantly, this is what happens when Kobe Bryant fouls out down the stretch. The rest of the team has come a long way, but Kobe is still the straw that stirs  the drink. Hell, he’s the blender that mixes the smoothie.
Also, what is up with the Lakers losing the games I don’t watch? I was working from my desk late last night and [...]

Ah, that felt good — didn’t it?
My quick thoughts after letting it sink in for about 24…
If Trevor Ariza keeps working on his three-point shooting and stays aggressive, he’s going to be an exceptional player. My man Reggie Miller is helping his shooting. Those UCLA shooting sessions are definitely working.
Andrew Bynum is starting to come into his own. It’s just not scoring either, but also rebounding. Kareem, keep working with the kid — Diaper Drew is getting it.
My two favorite players ever helping my two favorite young Lakers. I love it.
It’s great to have Jordan Farmar back, and, boy, did [...]