February 26th: Celtics & Lakers 4pm. Jackson wonders about team focus, compliments Odom, Kobe.

 
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Phil
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PostPosted: Sun Feb 26, 2006 10:16 am    Post subject: February 26th: Celtics & Lakers 4pm. Jackson wonders about team focus, compliments Odom, Kobe.

Jackson wonders about team focus
By Ross Siler, Staff Writer

EL SEGUNDO - Phil Jackson wasn't about to provide a lot of specifics about the hour-and-a-half the Lakers spent in the film room Saturday, but one word kept creeping into his conversation with reporters.

After throttling Sacramento on Thursday, Jackson was left wondering where the Lakers' focus was in a 102-83 loss to the Clippers only a night later.

"It's about letting someone else do the work and kind of just taking it off," Jackson said, "instead of meeting the responsibilities and the requirements of being a professional."

Maybe it had something to do with playing three games in four nights. Maybe it was the letdown after an important victory against the Kings. Maybe it was another in the continued series of struggles for the youngest team Jackson ever has coached.

But it was unacceptable all the same for Jackson. The Lakers missed their first eight shots and fell behind 12-1 in the game's first six minutes, fought back to take the lead in the third quarter, then gave up a 16-0 run to the Clippers.

It was reminiscent of the Lakers' Feb. 7 game at Dallas, when they trailed 27-10 after the first quarter, took their only lead of the game in the third and watched as the Mavericks closed out the third quarter on a 12-2 run.

"The other team starts getting more determined," Jackson said, "and we let up."


Last edited by Phil on Mon Feb 27, 2006 7:08 pm; edited 2 times in total
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PostPosted: Sun Feb 26, 2006 10:17 am    Post subject:

Jackson says Odom making positive strides

By KEVIN DING
The Orange County Register

EL SEGUNDO – Together almost five months now, Lakers coach Phil Jackson is still piecing together his profile of Lamar Odom.

Just before halftime of the Lakers' loss to the Clippers on Friday night, Jackson could be heard yelling across the court to Odom: "Wake up!" Nevertheless, Jackson retains a fundamental good vibe about Odom's direction.

"I believe in Lamar," Jackson said Saturday. "He's a player who does so many things right as far as working, good teammate, his effort - all these things. He has got a lot of things that work against him that he has overcome. Those things are going to be paybacks for him. He knows that.

"He knows that hard work and good behavior have their own karmic effect. I don't know if I want to get into 'My Name is Earl' things, but they do. We really have to be patient. He's 26, and he's a man learning how to play in this league who has been traded around and bumped around a few times."
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Phil
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PostPosted: Sun Feb 26, 2006 10:20 am    Post subject:

Bryant Finally Able to Come In From the Cold
February 26 2006

No, really, for one of those old-time, generic All-Star weekends, it was OK.

Even the dunk contest was good, with 5-foot-9 Nate Robinson vaulting over his tyke forerunner, Spud Webb, at least until the judges got carried away and gave the nod to Robinson, who needed 14 tries for his winning jam, over spectacular Andre Iguodala.

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The game was competitive. No one got hurt. What else is there to say but … Viva, Las Vegas!

And now for the Meaning of It All:

Once again, the event seemed to be primarily about Kobe Bryant, but this one marked his return rather than his fall.

At the 2004 media session, a Laker publicist announced, "Basketball questions only!" In 2005, with the legal case gone but Bryant more isolated within the game than ever, he was a pincushion for Shaquille O'Neal, who delighted in pretending he didn't know his name.

This time, Bryant was one of the guys — or the foremost of them. Even O'Neal, who'd been silent on Bryant's 81-point game, was obliged to say it was "fantastic."
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PostPosted: Sun Feb 26, 2006 10:23 am    Post subject:

Jackson: Clippers a Part of Odom's Karmic Puzzle
By Jerry Crowe, Times Staff Writer
February 26 2006

A day after they'd lost again to the Clippers — they've dropped four of five to their Staples Center arena-mates — the Lakers hunkered down for three hours of film review and practice, Coach Phil Jackson indicating in a roundabout way that perhaps they hadn't been mentally prepared to play Friday night.

Jackson also indicated that Lamar Odom, cast adrift by the Clippers three summers ago and traded to the Lakers from the Miami Heat in 2004, might still feel the sting of rejection but could benefit from lessons learned on television.


"I think the Clippers bring a whole different magnitude to his games against them," Jackson said of Odom, who scored only eight points on three-for-12 shooting and has often seemed distracted against the Clippers, having twice been ejected from games against them last season. "There must be some tension there still."

Still, the coach added, "I believe in Lamar. He's a player that does so many things right, as far as working, [being a] good teammate, his effort, all these things…. He knows that hard work and good behavior and all those things have their own karmic effect. I don't know if I want to get into 'My Name Is Earl,' but they do."
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PostPosted: Sun Feb 26, 2006 10:29 am    Post subject:

Pierce primed for matchup

By Shira Springer, Globe Staff | February 26, 2006

LOS ANGELES -- Call it a groove, a zone, an out-of-body experience. Few players know what it feels like to score 30-plus points per game with ease and regularity. Few know what it feels like to have layups from impossible angles fall almost every time, or what it feels like to hit clutch jumpers again and again.


Few players know what it feels like to be an offensive juggernaut of one. Paul Pierce and Kobe Bryant belong to the elite club of top NBA scorers. They know.

This afternoon at the Staples Center, the league's top scorer (Bryant) will oppose the league's No. 6 scorer (Pierce) for the first time this season. While more than 8 points per game separate the two, a look at Pierce's most recent performances hint that the matchup may be closer than indicated on paper.

''This time of the year, you know when to turn it up," said Pierce, who is averaging 26.6 points per game this season and 29.0 on the current trip. ''It's the second half of the season. We're making a playoff push. I just want to pick up my play, get better as the season goes along.

''I'm in a good groove right now. I feel good out there. I've got my legs. My wind is good. The guys are doing a great job of finding me in the right spots. That's just about it."
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PostPosted: Sun Feb 26, 2006 10:32 am    Post subject:

The Times' Rankings
By Mark Heisler, Times Staff Writer
February 26 2006

1. Detroit (45-9) Still on 68-win pace but next week the Pistons start stretch with nine of 11 on road, including four-game West Coast swing. (Last week: 1)

2. Dallas (44-11) Somebody better pinch them: Mavericks on 18-1 run, coming from 19 and 24 points behind in the last two. (2)

3. San Antonio (43-12) Duncan will have to go back to being Duncan or Ginobili will have to bump up that 15.5 average. (4)

4. Phoenix (37-17) Sarver ought to do what he does, make money and dress up like animals, and let the professionals run the team. (3)

5. Miami (35-20) Shaq's getting in shape, but Wade's the one heating it up this month, averaging 30, shooting 53%. (5)

6. Clippers (31-23) Subdued for team surprising everyone because they know they're better than their record. Lakers just got glimpse of how good. (6)

7. New Jersey (31-23) As Vince Carter goes, so go the Nets: He averages 27 and 9.1 free-throw attempts in wins, 20 and 5.1 in losses. (8 )

8. Cleveland (32-23) Rest of way won't be easy but LeBron's further along, has a little more help and team won't be sold to new owner eager to put his imprint on it again. (7)

9. Memphis (30-25) People have been all over Gasol who arrived at 21 weighing 220 but at 25, he's still tracking up at career highs 19.9 points, 9.2 rebounds. (10)

10. Denver (30-26) Karl has to work with what he has with Nene, Andre Miller, Kenyon Martin, all ticketed to ride at one time or another, still there. (12)

11. Washington (29-25) Caron Butler taking Larry Hughes' old place in Big Three, averaging 18 as starter as Wizards win 16 of 22. (14)

12. New Orleans/Oklahoma City (30-25) Reality check: Five of first six coming out of break are on the road. So far they're 1-2. (9)

13. Indiana (27-25) Pacers were 7-2 with Peja Stojakovic before they fell on their faces coming out of break, losing in San Antonio and at home to Atlanta. (11)

14. Lakers (28-27) Still have a good shot at No. 8 with better schedule than Jazz and Kings. If that's not enough, that's as good as it gets now. (16)
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PostPosted: Sun Feb 26, 2006 10:38 am    Post subject:

Boston resumes old rivalry with LA

(Sports Network) - The Los Angeles Lakers are having a tough month and will try to get back in the victory column Sunday when they open a small two-game homestand against the Boston Celtics at the Staples Center.

Los Angeles owns a 4-7 record in February and continued the downslide Friday night against the rival Clippers.

Kobe Bryant had 39 points and eight assists, while Chris Mihm added 11 points and seven boards in the loss for the Lakers, who had a brief two-game winning streak halted.

Los Angeles, which is 3-1 in its last four home games, owns a 15-10 record at the Staples Center this season. LA is currently seeded sixth in the Western Conference playoff hunt.

Boston, meanwhile, has won four of its last six game following a six-game losing streak.

On Friday night against the Portland Trail Blazers, Paul Pierce poured in 37 points in a 102-96 triumph at the Rose Garden.
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PostPosted: Sun Feb 26, 2006 10:45 am    Post subject:

Boozer to L.A. this summer?

The Jazz held off on dealing Carlos Boozer to the Lakers, but look for that deal to be revisited this summer. The Lakers' package included Brian Cook and Chris Mihm, but the Jazz believes it can do better than that. Once Boozer is a Laker, Lamar Odom is gone, if not before.
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