duncan228
03-12-2009, 01:00 AM
No Bynum, no problem for Lakers (http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/No_Bynum_no_problem_for_Lakers.html)
Jeff McDonald
It's been 39 days since Andrew Bynum, the ultra-talented but star-crossed 7-footer of the Los Angeles Lakers, collapsed in a heap on the floor of Memphis' FedEx Forum.
In what can only be described as a freak accident, Bynum came crashing down after Kobe Bryant had crashed into his leg, felled by what was later diagnosed as a torn medial collateral ligament in his right knee.
In a span of seconds, the Western Conference race had been transformed. Bynum's injury supposedly made the Lakers vulnerable again, and opened the door for another contender — most notably the Spurs — to make a run at them.
Except it didn't.
The Lakers were five games up on the second-place Spurs after their medically marred Jan. 31 victory over the Grizzlies.
Tonight, they traipse into the AT&T Center for the final time in the regular season, up seven games in the West, so far out in front that the Spurs — and everyone else — stand little chance of catching them.
Even without Bynum, L.A. has barely missed a beat.
“They're used it,” said Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, recalling the dislocated left kneecap that kept Bynum out the final three months of the regular season and the entirety of the playoffs last year. “The way I remember it, they were in the Finals. Either way, they're pretty darn good.”
Popovich has always said he prefers to face the NBA's elite in the final month of the season, as opposed to the lottery-bound dregs. He believes it to be the best way to tune up for the playoffs.
Tonight, against the only team in the West with a better record than his Spurs, Popovich will get his wish.
The Lakers tote to town the NBA's best mark (51-13) and a near-lock on top playoff seed. In the 18 games since Bynum went down, L.A. has gone 14-4.
With a victory, the Spurs will take the season series, not insignificant with a potential playoff rematch beckoning.
“It's always good to win, but if you lose it's not the end of the world,” point guard Tony Parker said. “We're definitely going to give it our best shot.”
The Lakers have weathered Bynum's latest journey to the center of the injured list thanks to Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom, each of whom have raised their games in the big man's absence. Bryant, already the Western Conference's top scorer, is averaging 31.5 points per game since Bynum's injury.
Not long after Bynum went down, the Spurs lost Manu Ginobili to another bum ankle, wounding their best shot at closing the gap with L.A. With a wide cushion in the conference, there is little reason to think the Lakers will be threatened between now and Bynum's return, projected to be sometime in April.
Yet not everything is rosy in La-La Land. Earlier this week, the Lakers were blown out at Portland, a fate the Spurs know well.
Before that game, Tex Winter — Phil Jackson's longtime confidant and now an L.A. consultant — told the Los Angeles Times he thought the Lakers' sparkling record was a bit of a mirage.
“I don't think we're playing nearly as good as our record indicates,” Winter said, adding, “I see a lot of warts on this team.”
Winter could be accused of nit-picking, akin to complaining about a beauty mark on a supermodel. In that, Winter has a kindred spirit in Popovich.
For his part, Popovich is still looking for sustained improvement on the defensive end, even after a stretch in which the Spurs have improved from 18th in the league in field-goal percentage defense to 11th. Over the past 10 games, the Spurs are limiting opponents to 41.7 percent shooting, tops in the NBA over that span.
“You're pushing your players to reach perfection in whatever area it might be,” Popovich said. “Coach Winter sees the same things in his team that we and other people see in our teams. We all see room to get better, and we have to keep pushing in that direction.”
Though the Spurs have all but abandoned their pursuit of the Lakers in the conference race, their pursuit of perfection goes on.
“Everything here is a learning process,” guard Roger Mason Jr. said. “It's about building up for the playoffs.”
Jeff McDonald
It's been 39 days since Andrew Bynum, the ultra-talented but star-crossed 7-footer of the Los Angeles Lakers, collapsed in a heap on the floor of Memphis' FedEx Forum.
In what can only be described as a freak accident, Bynum came crashing down after Kobe Bryant had crashed into his leg, felled by what was later diagnosed as a torn medial collateral ligament in his right knee.
In a span of seconds, the Western Conference race had been transformed. Bynum's injury supposedly made the Lakers vulnerable again, and opened the door for another contender — most notably the Spurs — to make a run at them.
Except it didn't.
The Lakers were five games up on the second-place Spurs after their medically marred Jan. 31 victory over the Grizzlies.
Tonight, they traipse into the AT&T Center for the final time in the regular season, up seven games in the West, so far out in front that the Spurs — and everyone else — stand little chance of catching them.
Even without Bynum, L.A. has barely missed a beat.
“They're used it,” said Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, recalling the dislocated left kneecap that kept Bynum out the final three months of the regular season and the entirety of the playoffs last year. “The way I remember it, they were in the Finals. Either way, they're pretty darn good.”
Popovich has always said he prefers to face the NBA's elite in the final month of the season, as opposed to the lottery-bound dregs. He believes it to be the best way to tune up for the playoffs.
Tonight, against the only team in the West with a better record than his Spurs, Popovich will get his wish.
The Lakers tote to town the NBA's best mark (51-13) and a near-lock on top playoff seed. In the 18 games since Bynum went down, L.A. has gone 14-4.
With a victory, the Spurs will take the season series, not insignificant with a potential playoff rematch beckoning.
“It's always good to win, but if you lose it's not the end of the world,” point guard Tony Parker said. “We're definitely going to give it our best shot.”
The Lakers have weathered Bynum's latest journey to the center of the injured list thanks to Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom, each of whom have raised their games in the big man's absence. Bryant, already the Western Conference's top scorer, is averaging 31.5 points per game since Bynum's injury.
Not long after Bynum went down, the Spurs lost Manu Ginobili to another bum ankle, wounding their best shot at closing the gap with L.A. With a wide cushion in the conference, there is little reason to think the Lakers will be threatened between now and Bynum's return, projected to be sometime in April.
Yet not everything is rosy in La-La Land. Earlier this week, the Lakers were blown out at Portland, a fate the Spurs know well.
Before that game, Tex Winter — Phil Jackson's longtime confidant and now an L.A. consultant — told the Los Angeles Times he thought the Lakers' sparkling record was a bit of a mirage.
“I don't think we're playing nearly as good as our record indicates,” Winter said, adding, “I see a lot of warts on this team.”
Winter could be accused of nit-picking, akin to complaining about a beauty mark on a supermodel. In that, Winter has a kindred spirit in Popovich.
For his part, Popovich is still looking for sustained improvement on the defensive end, even after a stretch in which the Spurs have improved from 18th in the league in field-goal percentage defense to 11th. Over the past 10 games, the Spurs are limiting opponents to 41.7 percent shooting, tops in the NBA over that span.
“You're pushing your players to reach perfection in whatever area it might be,” Popovich said. “Coach Winter sees the same things in his team that we and other people see in our teams. We all see room to get better, and we have to keep pushing in that direction.”
Though the Spurs have all but abandoned their pursuit of the Lakers in the conference race, their pursuit of perfection goes on.
“Everything here is a learning process,” guard Roger Mason Jr. said. “It's about building up for the playoffs.”