Hey everyone. Sorry for the unfortunate message this morning that the site was down. We were having some issues with the server and I unfortunately lost the first half of the article I wrote breaking down the Hornets and Spurs.

Congrats to the Lakers for closing out the Utah Jazz and making it to the conference finals. Great accomplishment for this young team. I will be posting a full length article tomorrow morning!

If anyone would like to post some articles or write some material to be discussed, please let me know, I would love to create some additional user accounts!

I was watching ESPN earlier today and learned the Los Angeles Lakers assistant coach Kurt Rambis is the front runner for the head coaching position with the Phoenix Suns. Last year, Brian Shaw was the man from the Lakers bench that all the other teams were raving about, interviewing him for the head coaching positions on their respective teams. This year, the tables have turned.

Kurt Rambis, a long time Lakers player and coach, known for his signature retro glasses has been actively interviewing with various teams and has drawn lots of interest from the Phoenix Suns. I wish I had more to report on this topic however I’m not sure what to say.

Will Kurt Rambis bring the triangle offense to Phoenix? Will he really leave his beloved Lakers for the Pacific Division rivals? Who takes his place to scout teams like Phoenix? Should Mitch Kupchak reassure him that after Phil Jackson retires he can take his spot? Will the Lakers be as successful? Who will do the AM 570 interviews?

When Pau Gasol was first traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, everyone, including myself, was filled with joy. We now had a big man that could play big, could create his own shot with his repatoir of moves in the post, and could collect rebounds.

Pau Gasol has been great for the Lakers….on the offensive side, and to further that, when he plays against a physical defender, he cant even really do that much. His numbers in this years playoffs have been somewhat decieving. Besides his first game against the Denver Nuggets and his 18 point 10 rebound performance in one game against Utah, he has seemingly not done much in these playoffs. He isnt even converting on his freethrows, which was one of the key components to his game. But enough about offense, compared to most centers in the leauge, Pau’s offense is exceptional and I am not one to complain.

The real problem is Pau Gasol’s defense, or lack there of. Sure Andrew Bynum didnt have the offensive one on one skills that Gasol has, but he made up for that with his superb defense. If you have been watching Gasol this playoff season, you have seen some of the worst defense ever. He doesnt rotate, box out to get rebounds, and by the time he makes it to the other end of the floor the other team has already scored. Ever heard of transition defense Pau? Apparently not.

You might ask yourslef, “Well, why is one person so important? There are still 4 other guys who play good defense…” To answer that, the Lakers play a “help-style” defense. When they guard their man, they are set up so that they are below the plane and in between their man and the man dribbling the ball. This works because if you get beaten off the dribble, you will have someone “ROTATING” over and “HELPING” you out.

Pau Gasol is extremely late on his rotation’s simply because he is lazy. So what is happening? The other offensive man is getting a wide open layup, and if he misses, an offensive rebound occurs because Pau is late coming to the box.

Simply put, the Lakers can score with the best of them…but defense wins championships. The Lakers will only go as far as their defense goes, and right now, the defense is dependent upon Pau Gasol’s willingness to work hard and move his feet.

As we all clearly witnessed, Kobe Bryant hurt his back early in the game on Sunday afternoon in Utah as the Lakers went down in overtime to the tough Jazz. The Utah Jazz played their hearts out and worked hard in overtime to secure the home win and extend the series to six games.

Andrei Kirelinko had the assignment of guarding Kobe Bryant and I must admit, he did a fine job. Actually, he did a great job. Kobe still went off for 30+ points, but those points were damn hard to accumulate. He worked hard to get those baskets and shot a lousy percentage. His free throw shooting was off as well bringing the teams percentage even lower.

After the game, Bryant conducted his post game interview for the media standing up rather than sitting down behind the table like all coaches and players do. He spoke of the superb defense that AK47 played on him and he made it clear that he would be ready to play on Wednesday in Game 5 back at Staples Center.

Tuesday was another tough day for him though. He showed up at the training facility in El Segundo, just like every other Lakers teammate of his, however he didn’t practice. He has gone through round the clock therapy on his back to make sure he recovers in time to give his best effort. We all know that game 5 is almost a “must win” because if the Jazz come away with a victory, it will be quite difficult beating them back in Salt Lake City in game 6.

When asked of his back today he spoke confidently. “Quite a bit [of pain], but it’s a lot better than it was yesterday,” Bryant said with a smile — his mood clearly positive. “It’ll be fine. I think the key is to know what you can and can’t do,” he said. “I kind of know what I can and can’t do. I hope I can do what’s necessary to help us win. Sleeping’s tough. This car ride home is going to be a beast, sitting in traffic. I’ll stretch out when I get home.”

Lakers coach Phil Jackson said he believes there’s a possibility Bryant might not shoot that well, but added: “As long as he can play, we’re satisfied. He’ll do OK.” Jackson also said he wasn’t feeling the pressure a deadlocked series might bring. Having coached nine NBA championship teams, he’s been in this kind of situation many times before. “We know we have homecourt advantage. We earned it,” Jackson said. “We feel very confident in our building. I personally am for the cut-slash game. I like speed. Our team is long, lanky, lean. You’ve got to beat the opponent to the punch. You’ve got to deliver the first blow. That’s what I’m telling the guys.”

Well, all I know is that I can’t wait to see this game tomorrow night. I finish my last final of the spring semester at 6:00PM and will be ready to watch the Lakers at 6:01PM!! I will be on this Lakers blog putting together a live play by play for the game! Prepare to enjoy!

As a big time basketball fan I am sitting around watching the Boston Celtics take on the Cleveland Cavaliers. I couldn’t resist but share this video with everyone possible. Thanks to Odenized for capturing this clip.

Lebron gets fouled by Paul Pierce as he is running ahead of the pack, and the momentum of the two players carries them into the stands. Guess who’s sitting court side… Lebron’s loving mother. She gets up and apparently starts yelling at Kevin Garnett and then Lebron makes sure mom knows these are his friends.

“DON’T YELL AT MY FRIENDS LIKE DAT MA, SIT YO ASS BACK DOWN”