Living in Southern California, you will often miss a marquee game on a Sunday afternoon.  Lucky for me I did not miss this one.

A few of my thoughts from todays action follow

-As a Laker Fan and participant in this blogging community, I could not of asked for a better response to some of the posts I saw after the Portland game friday. I hope X23 and Tsunami were watching.

-The Lakers really need to get some healthy bodies back soon. Since Radmonivich went to the IR to join Ariza and Bynum the Lakers have looked like the thinnest contender this side of Phoenix.  An undermanned Portland team, and a Miami team playing horrible basketball allowed the Lakers to hide the fact that their wonderful depth does not extend forever. When the Lakers have had to play against an athletic and agressive Portland team (the one with Roy in the lineup) their inability to defend and rebound at a high level were exposed.

-Dampier looked like an All Star this afternoon, the Mavs manhandled the Lakers on the boards all day. Only a superhuman effort from Bryant (his second astounding game against a contender since the break) allowed them to squeak by at home against a team I don't believe is a true contender for the championship.

-Dirk showed more heart, guts and skill in the second half of this game than he did in the NBA finals or the series against Golden State last year. I had written this guy off as someone who disappears in the clutch and someone who could not succeed against a long athletic defender who knows how to play him. Dirk proved me wrong and I can't wait to see if he steps it up in the clutch next time.

-Jason Kidd showed both why the Mavericks traded for him (rebounding, improving the break, getting the ball inside, and some streaky 3 point shooting), and why there are doubters (bricks in the 4th quarter, non factor in OT)

All in all, this was a thrilling NBA game. Tough basketball, superstars earning their accolades, playoff atmosphere and plenty of fodder for discussion. I hope you guys out there enjoyed it as much as I did.