Jonathan Abrams/LA Times: As the Lakers wrapped up their final practice before Sunday's
first-round playoff game against the Denver Nuggets, Andrew Bynum and
Trevor Ariza sat together on a large medicine ball.
Sunday and throughout the first round, the injured pair figure to be sharing a spot on the bench.
The odds of Bynum returning for the series from his knee injury were already small and Lakers Coach Phil Jackson ruled him out.
"I'd say it's fair to say that," Jackson said today. "
No surprise here. I wasn't expecting his return any time soon, but there is still the internet contingent that is still basing the Lakers destiny on the presence of Andrew. It's already known that if Andrew gets back this season, he will most likely come off the bench... yet another fact that bothers the internet.
More on Ariza as well: As for Ariza, Jackson did not say the defensive-minded small forward
was definitely out, but his chances of returning from a foot injury to
face the Nuggets are slim.
"I'm not ruling out Trevor," Jackson said, later adding: "He's going to
have to do some things, but this is a pretty long series and we have
some games in between."
There we have it. The story also mentioned that Coby Karl would be on the bench tomorrow, but it's likely that Ira Newble will get the final spot on the 12-man roster. He better.
If you're out of the loop, the Lakers play tomorrow at noon pacific on ABC. You can also check out my preview on the series for stats, historical numbers, matchups, ect...
[edit 11:29am - Sunday] The latest rumors floating around he internet is that Bynum is currently suffering from Chondromalacia, which is the irritation of the cartilage of the undersurface of the kneecap. This is also known as Runner's Knee. Again, this is from a ClubLakers.com's forum post, so, you be the judge:
"(via Phil Jackson after Bynum reports from the doctor in NY)
His pain is caused from an irritation in his kneecap after the healing
of the dislocation. This is known as Chondromalacia or Runner's Knee.
He may have got this from working out so soon after healing. What he
really needed was a gradual return to activity to avoid any of the
inflammation of the knee (which we have been seeing so much, and why
he's not practicing.) It's not so much of torn cartilidge, more
damaged. And the only way he returns is if this irritation stops
bothering him and play and he feels comfortable with the natural
basketball movements he's used to like pivoting and landing. Right now,
it's just waiting.
"
With 82 games behind us in one of the craziest Lakers' seasons of late, it's FINALLY time for some playoff basketball. What started at 9-8 with all of the looks of another mediocre season, the Lakers (and Mitch) turned things around into their first #1 seed since 2000. The Lakers head into this series with hopes of avoiding their third-straight first-round dismissal. In the previous two seasons the Suns dismissed the Lakers early. This season, the Denver Nuggets stand in the way of redemption.
The Lakers are 3-0 in the season series with a 127-99 win on 11/29 at home, a 111-107 win on 12/5 at the Pepsi Center, and a 116-99 win on 1/21 at home. In the regular season, the Lakers scored 108.6 points per game and allowed 101.3 points per game with an offensive rating at 3rd of 30 and a defensive rating at 5th of 30. The Nuggets scored 110.7 points per game and allowed 107.0 points per game with an offensive rating at 11th of 30 and a defensive rating at 10th of 30. All three of the Lakers' wins were prior to the Gasol trade.
Series Schedule: Game One Sunday - 4/20 Nuggets @ Lakers Noon - ABC Announcers: Mike Breen, Mark Jackson, Jeff Van Gundy, Michele Tafoya
Game Two Wednesday - 4/23 Nuggets @ Lakers 7:30pm - TNT/FSN TNT Announcers: Marv Albert, Reggie Miller and Craig Sager
Game Three Saturday - 4/26 Lakers @ Nuggets 2:30pm - TNT/KCAL TNT Announcers: Marv Albert, Reggie Miller and Craig Sager
Game Four Monday - 4/28 Lakers @ Nuggets 7:30pm - TNT/KCAL TNT Announcers: Marv Albert, Reggie Miller and Craig Sager
The Lakers are 61-28 in best-of-seven series (any round) all-time. (55-27 Los Angeles, 6-1 Minneapolis)
The Lakers are 57-32 in Game 1 of best-of-seven series (any round) all-time. (53-29 Los Angeles, 4-3 Minneapolis)
When winning Game 1 of a best-of-seven series (any round), the Lakers are 50-7. (46-7 Los Angeles, 4-0 Minneapolis)
When losing Game 1 of a best-of-seven series (any round), the Lakers are 11-21 all-time. (9-20 Los Angeles, 2-1 Minneapolis)
The Lakers are 50-39 in Game 2 of best-of-seven series (any round) all-time. (47-35 Los Angles, 3-4 Minneapolis)
When splitting Games 1 and 2 of a best-of-seven series (any round), the Lakers are 25-12 all-time. (20-12 Los Angeles, 5-0 Minneapolis)
When losing Games 1 and 2 of a best-of-seven series (any round), the Lakers are 2-15 all-time. (2-14 Los Angeles, 0-1 Minneapolis)
When winning both Games 1 and 2 of a best-of-seven series (any round), the Lakers are 34-1 all-time. (33-1 Los Angeles, 1-0 Minneapolis)
Opening Round History (from game notes): The Lakers have opened the Playoffs in the FIRST Round 36 times and in the SECOND round on seven occasions (1962, 63, 65, 66, 80, 82, 83) since moving to Los Angeles prior to the 1960-61 season. The Lakers have won 33-of- 43 opening playoff series over that span and are 124-66 (.653) in opening round games.
In Game 1’s of their first postseason series, the Lakers are 31-12. When the Lakers have had home-court advantage in the opening round, they have posted a 30-2 series record. When winning Game 1 in the opening round, the Lakers have a series record of 30-1. Their lone loss came to the Phoenix Suns (2-3) in 1993. When falling behind 0-1 in the opening round, the Lakers are 3-9.
Staples Center Advantage (from game notes): Since moving to STAPLES Center prior to the 1999-2000 season, the Lakers have won 81% of their postseason games (43-10). The Lakers have topped the century mark in nearly half of their postseason home games at STAPLES Center (26-of-53) while the opposition has been held under 100 points in all but 12 of those games. In their last 16 home playoff games, the Lakers are 13-3.
You'd think something like this would be simple, however, from what I've seen around the web, there seems to be some confusion. Lakers Fans: thanks to the Rockets' loss to the Nuggets last night, all the Lakers need to do is beat the Kings Tuesday night to have the #1 seed in the West.
This may be no easy task.
The 38-42 Kings are fresh off of a 94-91 win over the Hornets. I know, the Lakers just rolled through Sacramento with a 22-point win, but this game shouldn't be taken lightly. The Kings are going to go into it wanting a win--there's no question. There is, however, the long-standing argument that seeding in the Western Conference doesn't matter this year. That could hold true. There's no Atlanta Hawks in the West.
The Warriors have a must-win tonight in Phoenix at 7:00pm. If Golden State loses, the Nuggets will have clinched the final spot in the wild wild west.
Here's a look at the Lakers' situation: As I've said, a win on Tuesday will grant the Lakers the #1 seed. The Hornets are currently a half game back. The Hornets have two games remaining (Vs. Clippers on Tuesday and @ Mavericks on Wednesday). If both teams win out, there will be an even tie for the #1 seed. Because the season series is tied 2-2, the Lakers would take the cake with the better conference record.
I hope everything is right. Let me know if you spot any mistakes.
"NBA star Carmelo Anthony has been arrested on su####ion of driving under the influence.
Police say the Denver Nuggets forward was arrested early Monday on
Interstate 25. He was pulled over for weaving and failing to dim his
lights.
Detective Sharon Hahn says Anthony failed a series of
sobriety tests. He was ticketed and released at the scene, but Hahn
does not know how he got home.
This news comes the day after the Nuggets took down the Rockets by a score of 111-94. The Nuggets will clinch the eighth spot in the west if Golden State loses to Phoenix tonight.
Well, the short handed Lakers threw a little bit of a wrench into equation tonight.
After quite possibly the worst week (in terms of losing players) of the season (or the past few seasons, for that matter), The Lakers, anchored by Derek Fisher are messing with us once again.
Tonight's 116-99 victory over the Nuggets provided proof of the Andrew Bynum Theory. 'When someone other than Kobe is hot (usually Bynum, but tonight, D-Fish) the Lakers will win.' This, (obviously) allows the Lakers to exploit the defense's special attention to Kobe, and... RESULTS. Who would've thought?
Fisher scored one off from his career high tonight, with 28 points. Jordan Farmar stepped things up, contributing to the bench mob's 40+ points, with 19. Kobe did his thing, scoring 17 points and dishing out 11 assists. Lamar put up 15 and 11, and Ronny Turiaf added 11. Oh yeah, Kwame didn't do too bad tonight, posting 7 and 11.
Carmelo Anthony managed to score 13 points before going down hard on Kobe's shoe, on what is most likely going to be an ankle sprain (x-rays were negative). Allen Iverson scored 24, LINAS Kleiza added 21, Marcus Camby put up 18 and 12, and Kenyon Martin contributed with 16 and 11. Odd stat of the night? Anthony Carter: ZERO points and 14 assists.
I don't really know what to say about tonight's game... I think everyone in LakerNation is expecting the worst, especially going into the huge road trip at the end of the month, and tonight we were treated to what can happen. Tonight, we saw the best game of the post-subluxation era... is there more to come? Post-Game Locker Talk [Lakers.com]
Heartwarming picture of the night? Los Angeles Lakers' Coby Karl, left hugs his father, Denver Nuggets
coach George Karl (AP Photo/Gus Ruelas)
Tonight marked the third time in NBA history that a father coached against a son. Yep, and Coby Karl aired out a three and tossed a behind the back pass into the lap of a Denver assistant. Nevertheless, we love Coby Karl.
I had another "I guess I'm glad Kobe stayed" moment tonight, as Kobe took charge in the fourth en route to a 111-107 win over the Nuggs on the road.
The Lakers scraped this one out, and Kobe noted that that was his prerogative for the team in a post-game interview on the four letter.
There's a lot of things I can complain about (i.e. Walton's free throws), but I'm not. From a fan's standpoint, a win is a win... especially when Allen Iverson drops 51 on you. The bottom line is that the Lakers made some mistakes in this game, but to pick them apart would do the Nuggets too much justice.
I've seen this happen to the Lakers a few times: Somebody (aka Kobe) posts 50+ and the team still loses. This should never happen, and I'll be right here criticizing if it happens to the Lakers again.
Lakers fans have heard a lot about relying on a superstar, but how about relying on superstars?
Allen Iverson and Carmelo Anthony combined for 77 points. The next leading scorer was Eddie Najera with ten, and after that it basically drops off. Iverson and Carmelo played terrific ball tonight, and their bench simply didn't come through. The Nuggets should have won this game by 40 points... instead, they pick up a loss out o####reat outing by Carmelo and a season night from A.I.
VHP Programming Update: You may have noticed a break from the norm in the amount of posts over the last week... PAPERS, PAPERS, PAPERS. Ah yes, the semester is coming to a close here, and the heat is on. Next week are finals, and after that VHP will get rolling full time again. In addition, look out for the new podcast launching on the 18th. I've had decent success with the once a week format in the past, so that's most likely the route I'll go with the show. I'll post a thread the night before I record with ways you can get involved... because, let's face it, it wouldn't be fun without the people.
Phil Jackson finally agreed to that two-year extension that had been nagging at him for some time now. The move bothered me somewhat after Phil's demeanor over the past few games, but tonight's huge 127, 99 win over Denver sways my opinion quite a bit. Jackson set Thanksgiving as a deadline for his decision, and after a tough road trip through the East Coast, a coaching error in the final play of Sunday's contest with the Nets, and a sloppy win over one of the league's worst teams, we all figured something was going to give.
Jackson's decision surprised me... and almost angered me, but some six hours later, I see the light. I sometimes forget about the head the Jackson had on his shoulders. I sometimes forget that he commanded MJ and the Bulls to victory. I sometimes forget that he brought championship basketball back to LA. Sometimes Phil looks disinterested as a coach, but when he leads the Lakers to big wins; his presence is invaluable.
And a big win this was. Despite trailing by 17 at one point in the second quarter, The Lakers posted seven in double figures, including someone who came out of the woodwork to land a career high. Sasha Vujacic lit it up from the field, finishing with 22 points. Kobe (aptly enough) scored 24, Luke Walton came off the bench with 14, and Lamar Odom posted 12.
Andrew Bynum showed his stuff, snagging another double-double, with 12 points and 11 rebounds.
The Lakers point guard tandem of D-Fish and Jordan Farmar put up 10 points respectively.
The best part to me, however was a result of the big lead... We finally got to see a lot more of the Bench Mob. The Lakers bench scored 63 points. That is HUGE.
We saw a lot of rookie, Javaris Crittenton, who scored seven points in five minutes.
We saw some more time out of newcomer Trevor Ariza, who laid some bricks at the line, missed a gimme, and impressed nobody.
SIDENOTES
Carmelo Anthony was ejected in the fourth quarter after nearly taking Sasha's dome off, in a play that resulted in a flagrant-two ruling after a video review.
Coby Karl scored 19 points in his first game with the Lakers' D-league affiliate, the Los Angeles D-Fenders.
I'm a realistic observer of the vast world that surrounds the Los Angeles Lakers. You can thank Nick Van Exel, Eddie Jones, Elden Campbell, Cedric Ceballos, and Vlade Divac for making that possible. The greatest person of all time is Francis Dayle "Chick" Hearn. There's no getting around that. Me? I'm eighteen years old and working my way to a journalism degree.
Tonight's 116-99 victory over the Nuggets provided proof of the Andrew Bynum Theory. 'When someone other than Kobe is hot (usually Bynum, but tonight, D-Fish) the Lakers will win.' This, (obviously) allows the Lakers to exploit the defense's special attention to Kobe, and... RESULTS. Who would've thought?
The Lakers scraped this one out, and Kobe noted that that was his prerogative for the team in a post-game interview on the four letter. 
points. Kobe (aptly enough) scored 24, Luke Walton came off the bench with 14, and Lamar Odom posted 12.
