Lakers rally around Kobe
Could the improving play of L.A.?s supporting cast be turning the Kobe Show back into the Lake Show?
The Lakers are on a bit of a roll these days and it?s not just Kobe Bryant taking all of the credit. Granted, Kobe still is L.A.?s driving force and leads the team in scoring with robotic consistency.
In fact, out of 72 games this season, Kobe has failed to lead the team in scoring in only seven, and in two of those games he didn?t even play. The last time Bryant wasn?t the leading scorer was back in early February.
Averaging a league-high 34.8 points per game (ppg), it?s hard to argue that Kobe is not the best player in the NBA right now. But even the best player in the world cannot win ball games by himself - he needs a solid supporting cast.
For the first half of the season, Kobe had little support. As a result, the Lakers could barely keep their heads above .500 and found themselves drifting in and out of the final playoff spot in the West.
Recently, however, support has started to emerge in Tinseltown. And the two primary players are Lamar Odom and, believe it or not, Kwame Brown.
A 6-foot-10 forward, Odom is the team?s leading rebounder (9.2 rpg) and is second on the team in scoring (14.8 ppg). This month, Odom has stepped it up and is averaging more than 18 points.
Brown has also become a factor, which likely comes as a surprise to many who figured the 6-foot-11 forward was a bust. Brown was drafted out of high school amid much fanfare by the Washington Wizards in 2001. After four disappointing seasons, the Wizards decided to cut bait with Brown and traded him to the Lakers in August.
Brown started the season slow and looked to be headed down the same disappointing path in L.A. Yet, even though he?s averaging just 6.7 ppg, Brown has noticeably improved both offensively and defensively in recent weeks.
He has been in double digits in scoring seven times this month and earned his fourth double-double of the season last week against Sacramento. In that game he had a season-high 21 points and 12 rebounds as the Lakers beat the Kings 87-80 as 3.5-point home favorites.
?I?ve done everything they?ve asked: run, rebound and defend,? Brown told The Orange County Register. ?I know that?s not fan-friendly type of work. But now they?ve asked me to score a little bit.?
In their last game against the Hornets, Brown had 17 points and was 7-for-7 from the floor. Odom also chipped in with 23 points and 8 boards as the Lakers beat the Hornets 105-94 as a 6.5-point chalk.
?When they have that type of production, they are going to be hard to beat,? Hornets coach Byron Scott said of Brown and Odom.
With both Odom and Brown supporting Kobe, the Lakers have strung together four straight wins and are now edging upward the playoff standings. Currently they are seventh overall in the West, two games ahead of Sacramento (as of Tuesday).
Bettors have also been cashing in on the Lakers? recent success. L.A. is 4-0-1 against the spread (ATS) in their past five games and 8-4-2 ATS in their previous 14.
With improvements on defense, the Lakers have been keeping games lower scoring. In their past seven games, six have fallen UNDER the posted total.
On Thursday, the Lakers will face a big test when they host the defending NBA champion San Antonio Spurs in the second game of TNT?s weekly doubleheader (10:30 p.m. ET).
It will be L.A.?s fourth meeting of the season with the Spurs, who are neck-in-neck with the Dallas Mavericks for top spot in the conference.
The Lakers lost the first game with the Spurs 90-84 as 13-point road dogs, then lost the second game 103-96 as 4.5-point home dogs. Earlier this month, they won the third game in San Antonio 100-92 as 8-point dogs.
Two of the three games fell below the posted total.
In the opener of TNT?s Thursday doubleheader, the Phoenix Suns will visit the Indiana Pacers (8 p.m. ET).
The Suns are just 5-5 SU (3-6-1 ATS) in their past 10 games and seem to be having trouble adjusting to the return of last year?s leading scorer Amare Stoudemire. On Monday, they Suns were smoked by the New Jersey Nets 110-72 as 4.5-point road favorites. It was the lowest point total of the season for the league?s highest-scoring team.
The Pacers are just 4-6 SU (5-4-1 ATS) in their past 10. Although currently third in the Central with a 35-34 SU record, Indiana is solidly in the playoff picture. The Pacers are 20-13-2 ATS at home; the Suns are 19-13 ATS on the road.
Perry---
BetWWTS.com
Could the improving play of L.A.?s supporting cast be turning the Kobe Show back into the Lake Show?
The Lakers are on a bit of a roll these days and it?s not just Kobe Bryant taking all of the credit. Granted, Kobe still is L.A.?s driving force and leads the team in scoring with robotic consistency.
In fact, out of 72 games this season, Kobe has failed to lead the team in scoring in only seven, and in two of those games he didn?t even play. The last time Bryant wasn?t the leading scorer was back in early February.
Averaging a league-high 34.8 points per game (ppg), it?s hard to argue that Kobe is not the best player in the NBA right now. But even the best player in the world cannot win ball games by himself - he needs a solid supporting cast.
For the first half of the season, Kobe had little support. As a result, the Lakers could barely keep their heads above .500 and found themselves drifting in and out of the final playoff spot in the West.
Recently, however, support has started to emerge in Tinseltown. And the two primary players are Lamar Odom and, believe it or not, Kwame Brown.
A 6-foot-10 forward, Odom is the team?s leading rebounder (9.2 rpg) and is second on the team in scoring (14.8 ppg). This month, Odom has stepped it up and is averaging more than 18 points.
Brown has also become a factor, which likely comes as a surprise to many who figured the 6-foot-11 forward was a bust. Brown was drafted out of high school amid much fanfare by the Washington Wizards in 2001. After four disappointing seasons, the Wizards decided to cut bait with Brown and traded him to the Lakers in August.
Brown started the season slow and looked to be headed down the same disappointing path in L.A. Yet, even though he?s averaging just 6.7 ppg, Brown has noticeably improved both offensively and defensively in recent weeks.
He has been in double digits in scoring seven times this month and earned his fourth double-double of the season last week against Sacramento. In that game he had a season-high 21 points and 12 rebounds as the Lakers beat the Kings 87-80 as 3.5-point home favorites.
?I?ve done everything they?ve asked: run, rebound and defend,? Brown told The Orange County Register. ?I know that?s not fan-friendly type of work. But now they?ve asked me to score a little bit.?
In their last game against the Hornets, Brown had 17 points and was 7-for-7 from the floor. Odom also chipped in with 23 points and 8 boards as the Lakers beat the Hornets 105-94 as a 6.5-point chalk.
?When they have that type of production, they are going to be hard to beat,? Hornets coach Byron Scott said of Brown and Odom.
With both Odom and Brown supporting Kobe, the Lakers have strung together four straight wins and are now edging upward the playoff standings. Currently they are seventh overall in the West, two games ahead of Sacramento (as of Tuesday).
Bettors have also been cashing in on the Lakers? recent success. L.A. is 4-0-1 against the spread (ATS) in their past five games and 8-4-2 ATS in their previous 14.
With improvements on defense, the Lakers have been keeping games lower scoring. In their past seven games, six have fallen UNDER the posted total.
On Thursday, the Lakers will face a big test when they host the defending NBA champion San Antonio Spurs in the second game of TNT?s weekly doubleheader (10:30 p.m. ET).
It will be L.A.?s fourth meeting of the season with the Spurs, who are neck-in-neck with the Dallas Mavericks for top spot in the conference.
The Lakers lost the first game with the Spurs 90-84 as 13-point road dogs, then lost the second game 103-96 as 4.5-point home dogs. Earlier this month, they won the third game in San Antonio 100-92 as 8-point dogs.
Two of the three games fell below the posted total.
In the opener of TNT?s Thursday doubleheader, the Phoenix Suns will visit the Indiana Pacers (8 p.m. ET).
The Suns are just 5-5 SU (3-6-1 ATS) in their past 10 games and seem to be having trouble adjusting to the return of last year?s leading scorer Amare Stoudemire. On Monday, they Suns were smoked by the New Jersey Nets 110-72 as 4.5-point road favorites. It was the lowest point total of the season for the league?s highest-scoring team.
The Pacers are just 4-6 SU (5-4-1 ATS) in their past 10. Although currently third in the Central with a 35-34 SU record, Indiana is solidly in the playoff picture. The Pacers are 20-13-2 ATS at home; the Suns are 19-13 ATS on the road.
Perry---
BetWWTS.com
