February 25th: Odom regresses, Jackson's plan fails and Lakers lose to the Clippers.

 
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Phil
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PostPosted: Sat Feb 25, 2006 8:23 am    Post subject: February 25th: Odom regresses, Jackson's plan fails and Lakers lose to the Clippers.

Lakers notes: Odom regresses to struggling ways
By Ross Siler, Staff Writer

Back in the first month of the season, Lakers coach Phil Jackson defined a star player as one capable of carrying his team four out of every five nights in the NBA.

Lamar Odom was trying to live up to a slightly lower standard and follow two assertive games this week with a third Friday night against the Clippers at Staples Center.

It was something Jackson hadn't seen in his first season with Odom, though he judges the 6-foot-10 forward more by how he fills up the box score than how many points he scores.

But Odom never got in rhythm on a night the Lakers were looking for anyone other than Kobe Bryant (39 points) to shoulder the load.

Odom finished with eight points, nine rebounds and an assist on 3-of-12 shooting. The Lakers fell behind 12-1 in the first six minutes, fought back to take the lead in the third quarter, then collapsed as the Clippers went on a 16-0 run.

"It wouldn't have mattered if Kobe would have had 60 and Lamar would have had 30," said Odom, who also missed 3 of 5 foul shots. "They beat our butts up and down the court."


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PostPosted: Sat Feb 25, 2006 8:27 am    Post subject:

George trying to do his part

03:50 AM PST on Saturday, February 25, 2006

By BRODERICK TURNER and JIM ALEXANDER / The Press-Enterprise

LOS ANGELES - His game has been on the rise lately, but Devean George said it has nothing to do with this being a contract year for him.

George said his game has picked up because Lakers coach Phil Jackson has asked him to be a stabilizing force for the reserves and because he wants to do whatever it takes to help the Lakers reach the playoffs.

Even so, George is in the final year of a contract that pays him $5 million, and he would like another long-term deal. George signed a four-year, $18.45 million deal after the 2001-02 season.

"My mentality is just play hard and see where things fall," said George, 28. "Yeah, I know I have to put in work this year, or I won't have a job next year."

George is averaging 7.3 points and 4.1 rebounds this season. But he has been on a tear of late.

George, in his seventh season with the Lakers, had averaged 14 points and 5.2 rebounds in 29.8 minutes over the previous five games off the bench. He had scored in double figures in five straight games before being held to four points Friday.

"I'm just being more aggressive," George said. "That's all. Kobe (Bryant) is getting doubled team so much, and I'm just trying to find some cracks. I'm just trying to be another threat out there."
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Phil
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PostPosted: Sat Feb 25, 2006 8:31 am    Post subject:

Jackson's strategy backfires on all fronts
When the coach opts to replace Brown with Cook to start the second half, the Clippers' Brand takes advantage of Mihm.

By KEVIN DING
The Orange County Register

LOS ANGELES – Kobe Bryant cast a gaze over to the Lakers' bench late in the third quarter, wondering if it was finally time, and it was. For a rare occasion this season, Bryant and Lakers coach Phil Jackson had disagreed on something.

Jackson opted to start Brian Cook after halftime instead of Kwame Brown, which meant center Chris Mihm guarded Clippers All-Star power forward Elton Brand.

But with 3:43 to go in the third quarter of the Lakers' 102-83 loss Friday night at Staples Center, Jackson gave up on it and pulled Mihm. By then, Brand had scored 14 of his 16 points in the quarter.

"I felt Kwame did a great job on him," Bryant said. "And in the third quarter when he went down to the bench, I think Elton Brand was able to free up a little bit and get going."

Jackson had used Brown on Brand to start the game, and in the first half Mihm had even been chided by Jackson for not holding firm defensively against Clippers center ZeljkoRebraca. Yet Jackson still opted for Mihm against Brand in the second half after Cook got hot with his shot late in the first half.

Asked about putting Mihm on Brand in the third, Jackson said: "It was a tough matchup at best," adding that he thought the Lakers' team defense got skewed away from Brand once Vladimir Radmanovic hit a three-pointer with 8:27 left in the quarter.
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PostPosted: Sat Feb 25, 2006 8:34 am    Post subject:

Clippers Have Run of Place
They end a five-game losing streak with a 102-83 victory over the Lakers, taking control during the third quarter. Brand has 32 points, Bryant 39.
By Jason Reid, Times Staff Writer
February 25 2006

It seemed like old times Friday night at Staples Center for the Clippers and Lakers, which wasn't good news for the Clippers.

The Lakers were feeling good about themselves after consecutive double-digit victories.

The Clippers?

Well, they had lost a season-high five straight games and often appeared lost in the process, so facing the Lakers and Kobe Bryant, the NBA's leading scorer, could have been another blow to their psyche.

But in a turnaround season for the Clippers, they had one of their most significant rebound performances in a 102-83 victory over their in-house rivals.

The Clippers, losers of six of seven, went on a 16-0 run in the third quarter and overcame the early loss of center Chris Kaman, who suffered a sprained left ankle late in the first quarter, did not return and is expected to sit out at least two games.

Again, Elton Brand led the way. The All-Star power forward had a big second half while scoring 32 points and grabbing 11 rebounds.

Bryant, who scored 50 points Jan. 7 in a 112-109 victory against the Clippers, had 39 Friday. He tormented the Clippers with his usual assortment of highlight-tape shots, but it wasn't enough.
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PostPosted: Sat Feb 25, 2006 8:36 am    Post subject:

It's a Thankless Job, but as Always, He Aims to Tease
February 25 2006

So little time, so many coaches and athletes to agitate, and where do I start when the Clippers take on the Lakers?

The media is limited to 45 minutes of access before a game, so every teasing minute counts and Lamar Odom is telling me "only God knows" if he can string together three good games in a row, as if Phil Jackson is going to tell me.


Right now Jackson is behind doors with Bill Walton. It would've been so much fun to watch Walton devour Jackson in the low post, but I cannot afford to let my mind wander. The clock is ticking, and I've got to hope Walton keeps talking to Jackson so I can sneak away and irritate Mike Dunleavy.

If you have to depend on one person to keep talking, I like my chances with Walton.



THE CLIPPERS hadn't won since they traded Chris Wilcox to Seattle. I mention this to Dunleavy, and he says, "I was thinking about that today because I knew you'd be asking me," and with all that time to think, the best answer he can offer is "only time will tell." I might have to start referring to the Clippers' coach as Mike Dullard.

Then he starts talking about the Lakers, "Even your guy, Devean George, is playing well," he says, so I try to keep the conversation going and say, "So you're shocked, like me?"
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PostPosted: Sat Feb 25, 2006 8:41 am    Post subject:

So much for upswing; Lakers backslide again

ANALYSIS: Bryant and Jackson bandy terms like "intensity" and "purpose" after the team shows little.

03:45 AM PST on Saturday, February 25, 2006

By BRODERICK TURNER / The Press-Enterprise

LOS ANGELES - The Lakers won their first two games after the All-Star break and looked good in winning.

But then came Friday night, a game against the cross-town rival Clippers, and the Lakers didn't play with the same passion.

Case and point was Lamar Odom, who stumbled after two good games. He scored just eight points, missing 9 of his 12 shots, in the Lakers' 102-83 defeat to the Clippers at Staples Center.

Kobe Bryant had 39 points, one of only two Lakers to score in double figures, but he was 12 for 29 from the field.

The Lakers shot 36.4 percent from the field and never resembled the team that beat Portland and Sacramento this week.

"We have a hard time keeping the intensity going as a team," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. "We carry the intensity for a couple of games, but to keep it continual, the intensity, the pressure, is sometimes hard for young players to do....

"For players to focus is difficult. So I think that they have to keep working at that."
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PostPosted: Sat Feb 25, 2006 8:44 am    Post subject:

Clippers have better Brand of work
Forward is way too much for Lakers, and appreciative crowd serenades the "M-V-P" candidate.
By Elliott Teaford
Daily Breeze

The MVP candidate sneaked behind the opposition's best player, ripped the ball from his hands and raced the length of the court to make a layup Friday night.

Moments later, he absorbed a shoulder to the chin from the opposing power forward, steadied himself, then leaped to block his shot.


Chants of "M-V-P, M-V-P," rained down on Elton Brand as he led the Clippers to a 102-83 rout of the Lakers in front of a sellout crowd of 19,820 at Staples Center.

With sweat pouring off his forehead, Brand simply outworked everyone in a Lakers uniform.

Brand torched Kwame Brown and anyone else Lakers coach Phil Jackson put on the All-Star power forward, scoring 32 points, taking 11 rebounds and blocking four shots. Brand had 16 points on 7-for-10 shooting in the third quarter alone, sparking a 19-2 run that broke open the game and broke the Lakers' backs.

"We had a blowout on our hands in the third quarter and we never recovered from that," Jackson said.
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PostPosted: Sat Feb 25, 2006 8:46 am    Post subject:

Brand takes charge

Clippers 102, Lakers 83 He leads a 16-0 run in the third quarter to help the Clippers pull away.

03:47 AM PST on Saturday, February 25, 2006

By JIM ALEXANDER / The Press-Enterprise

LOS ANGELES - Those ubiquitous "M-V-P, M-V-P" chants echoed through Staples Center again Friday night. Squared, this time.


The Lakers fans in the capacity crowd of 19,820 chanted for Kobe Bryant. Clippers fans, in the majority since it was their home game, roared those chants for Elton Brand.

They had the last laugh. Or last chant.

Brand scored nine points in a 16-0 third quarter run that gave the Clippers the lead for good in a 102-83 victory over their cross-building rivals. Brand finished with 32 points and 11 rebounds

Bryant, the focus of a Clippers defensive effort spurred by the urgency of a five-game losing streak, finished with 39 points and eight assists on 12-for-29 shooting. He had 13 points in the fourth quarter -- but only one free throw and an 0-for-2 ledger from the field in the third, when the Clippers outscored the Lakers 33-18.

"Our goal was not to let anyone else hurt us," Brand said, recalling the last meeting, a 112-109 Lakers victory when Bryant scored 40 of his 50 points in the second half.

"We were on track to beat them, but Kobe came up big at the beginning of the fourth quarter and the end of the third. We didn't want anyone else to get off and have any confidence."

Brand, in contrast, had a good amount of help.
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PostPosted: Sat Feb 25, 2006 8:55 am    Post subject:

Clippers' night uplifting
They overpower the Lakers and finally end their losing streak.

By ART THOMPSON III
The Orange County Register


The Lakers’ Kobe Bryant, right, and the Clippers’ Cuttino Mobley are separated by referee Eric Lewis after an altercation that led to technical fouls on both players.

LUCY NICHOLSON, REUTERS

LOS ANGELES – A weight of tremendous proportions was lifted from the Clippers' backs Friday night. With thunderous chants of "MVP ... MVP" ringing around the arena, Clippers forward Elton Brand finished his night with a 32-point, 11-rebound double-double as the Clippers defeated the Lakers, 102-83, in front of a 19,820 sellout at Staples Center.

The victory snapped a five-game Clippers losing streak, which point guard Sam Cassell described as being, "not a monkey on our back, but King Kong on our back.''

The Clippers led by 19 points in defeating the Lakers for the second time in three meetings. The Lakers only led twice, each by one point.
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PostPosted: Sat Feb 25, 2006 8:59 am    Post subject:

Brand explodes in second half to lift Clippers over Lakers


LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Just when it seemed the Lakers and Clippers were returning to their traditional roles, the Clippers showed who the team of the moment is in Los Angeles.

Elton Brand scored 24 of his 32 points in the second half and had 11 rebounds as the Los Angeles Clippers stopped a season-high five-game losing streak with a 102-83 win over the Lakers on Friday night.

"We lost five games in a row but I don't think we were playing badly," Clippers coach Mike Dunleavy said. "Our guys knew we had to have this game tonight."

Cuttino Mobley scored 22 points and Vladimir Radmanovic had 19, including five 3-pointers, for the Clippers, who have taken two of three from their crosstown rivals as they seek to make the playoffs for the first time in nine seasons.

"It was a huge game for morale," Brand said.

Kobe Bryant scored 39 points, but 25 were in the first half and he had just one point in the decisive third quarter.

Chris Mihm was the only other Laker in double figures with 11 points.

Brand took control of the game with 16 points in the third quarter.

After Smush Parker's 3-pointer gave the Lakers their only lead of the game at 51-50 with 9:45 to play in the quarter, the Clippers went on a 27-9 run that featured 10 points from Brand.
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PostPosted: Sat Feb 25, 2006 9:14 am    Post subject:

Clippers 102, Lakers 83

LOS ANGELES - Just when it seemed the Lakers and Clippers were returning to their traditional roles, the Clippers showed who is the team of the moment in Los Angeles.
Elton Brand scored 24 of his 32 points in the second half and had 11 rebounds as the Los Angeles Clippers stopped a season-high five-game losing streak with a 102-83 win over the Lakers on Friday night.

"We lost five games in a row but I don't think we were playing badly," Clippers coach Mike Dunleavy said. "Our guys knew we had to have this game tonight."

Cuttino Mobley scored 22 points and Vladimir Radmanovic had 19, including five 3-pointers, for the Clippers, who have taken two of three from their crosstown rivals as they seek to make the playoffs for the first time in nine seasons.

"It was a huge game for morale," Brand said.

Kobe Bryant scored 39 points, but 25 were in the first half and he had just one point in the decisive third quarter.

Chris Mihm was the only other Laker in double figures with 11 points.

Brand took control of the game with 16 points in the third quarter.

After Smush Parker's 3-pointer gave the Lakers their only lead of the game at 51-50 with 9:45 to play in the quarter, the Clippers went on a 27-9 run that featured 10 points from Brand.

Brand dunked over a pair of defenders, had a three-point-play a minute later, and had another dunk to put the Clippers up 77-60 with 2:59 to go in the quarter.

"He's a hard-hat guy," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said of Brand. "He's extended his range on his jumper, which has helped his game tremendously."

Radmanovic made a 3 in the final minute of the period to give the Clippers their biggest lead 81-62.
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PostPosted: Sat Feb 25, 2006 9:17 am    Post subject:

Kings notes: Round One to Bryant, but Artest will be back

By Sam Amick -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Saturday, February 25, 2006
Story appeared in Sports section, Page C5
For the time being, Ron Artest vs. Kobe Bryant was over, this round going to the Lakers star who scored 36 points as the Kings lost ground in the playoff race on Thursday night.

The next day in practice, Francisco García wanted to know what happened to the daily Cisco Kid vs. Ron Ron one-on-one battle that had yet to happen.

"I'm tired, man," Artest said when prompted by García to face off. "I was here last night late. Where were you?"

Artest didn't want to go to bed unsatisfied after he struggled against the Lakers, so he stuck around the practice facility after the Kings' plane touched down and the rest of the group - including García - headed for home. Artest was there until 1 a.m., hoping to hit the sack with images other than Bryant scoring at will in his head.

Artest said his conditioning became a factor when it came to chasing Bryant around. He welcomed the defensive help from Kevin Martin and García, who took over duty on occasion while Artest caught his breath.

"I wasn't really able to guard him the whole night because I wasn't in condition enough," he said. "I thought when I was on him, I did some good things. A couple times ... he made some tough shots.

"I think he's at his best right now, so it'll be good to see it when I'm at my best, too."

And while Artest admitted that Bryant had his way, he found humor in the one part of Bryant's repertoire that is nowhere near as sharp as his shot - his memory.

When asked after the game about the last time he faced Artest, Bryant said, "I haven't played against Ron in like four years. Seriously. I think I had 40(points)."
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