The All Star break is over and the Lakers are clearly ready to go to work. There is nothing standing in their way at this point and they will do whatever it takes to win the title.

Coming out of the All Star weekend in which Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, and Derek Fisher participated, the team was fresh and ready to go. Lamar Odom definitely got his much needed rest and Sasha Vujacic took a quick trip down to Mexico to relax and get away from the hassles of everyday life.

The first game was against the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday. The Lakers came away with a 96-83 victory but the game was definitely not as close as the score looked. To finish the 3rd quarter the Lakers led by 25 points and the starting lineup took the rest of the night off. I would’ve like to see the bench play a bit stronger and not give up what the starters worked for but I suppose that a win is a win and the team will improve from this game.

After beating the Hawks, the Lakers immediately got on a plane and flew out to Oakland to play the Golden State Warriors. Don Nelson’s team plays a lot of one on one offense and the Lakers were forced to go away from their team defense mentality. The Warriors were controlling the game through and jumped out to an eleven point lead in the third quarter.

When the time was right, Kobe took over and either made his shots or passed to a wide open teammate. It was a real pleasure watching him draw double teams and find either Pau Gasol or Lamar Odom under the basket. The game really turned around in the Lakers favor when Kobe found Trevor Ariza open on two plays in a row for three pointers. A five piont dificit turned into a one point lead and eventually a Lakers victory. MVP chants for Kobe outweight the Oracle Arena Warriors fans making me even more proud to be a Lakers fan.