Rolling ahead

Not much has changed this week for the L.A. Lakers, they are continuing to win games thanks in part to their big three of Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol(photo'd left) and Lamar Odom. The Lakers went on a 3 game streak beating teams, not really up to their standards. Their victories included wins over teams like Golden State Warriors, The Chicago Bulls and the Oklahoma City Super Sonics. Although all three of these teams are teams that shouldn't pose a threat to the Lakers, they have fallen to teams similar to those before. With less than a month remaining in the regular season and their remaining schedule heavily favoring them, how will the Lakers respond. Stay tuned to NBA.com for updates.

Standings

The Lakers goal this year isn't just to make the playoffs especially since thy already clinched their spot, they want to make it there with home court advantage throughout.

So far so good for L.A, after last years loss in the Boston Garden to the Celtics the Lakers have been working hard to guarantee that doesn't happen to them again.

So far Kobe Bryant and the Lakers have clinced the number 1 spot but they still stand 1 game behind Cleveland. With the season winding down will the Lakers be able to catch the Cavs?

Note:If the playoffs started today the Lakers would be playing the number 8 Dallas Mavericks in the first round. I dont think L.A really cares who they end up playing but I know the other 7 teams are trying to steer clear of L.A in the playoffs because they all know L.A. has something to prove this year.

Crunch Time

The Lakers are coming off yet another successful week, going 4-1 against some playoff contenders and some of the bottom of the standings teams.

The Lakers started by defeating the Minnesota Timberwolves 110-90 before losing to the young Portland Trailblazers. Kobe dropped 26 points in the loss while Pau Gasol added 18 points and 13 rebounds. 

The Lakers bounced back by defeating the Houston Rockets, 102-96 in an exciting and action packed possible playoff match up. It was a close throughout and at some points seemed like the Lakers were going to lose but they held on and got the victory. After a lot of physical contact and words from Ron Artest, Kobe exploded scoring 18 of his 37 points in the 4 th quarter. After the Game Kobe had some words toward Artest, "It wasn't much of a battle,'' Bryant said. "I kicked his butt tonight. We've had some battles in the past and he's gotten the best of me a few times. Tonight, I got the best of him.'' Pau Gasol added 20 points and Josh Powell added 17 points and ( rebounds to lad the Lakers to victory. 

The Lakers carried that momentum into their game against the number 2 team in the West, The San Antonio Spurs. Kobe scored 23 points and 6 assist to lead 5 players in double figures. With 1:46 seconds in the game Kobe scored a well contested 3 pointer to clinch the win and become the first team in the western conference to secure their spot in the playoffs. 

They finished the week defeating the Dallas Mavericks 107-100 on Sunday evening. Kobe scored a quiet 28 points while Trevor Ariza and Pau Gasol added 26 and 25 points.

Back to Reality

Its been a bad week for Lakers fans especially me. They lost back to back games against the Denver Nuggets and the Phoenix Suns whom they beat a few days ago. Maybe its fatigue thats slowing the Lakers down lately, who knows but hopefully its only temporary. Although Kobe Bryant scored 49 points against the Phoenix Suns it wasn't enough to rally his team to victory. Will the Lakers take their back to back loses to heart or will they continue on their losing streak and ruin their chances of making it to the NBA finals. Follow the Lakers road to the finals on
www.nba.com

Still Rolling

It seems nothing can stop the Los Angeles lakers lately. They are currently riding a 6 game win streak on their road to once again make it to the nba finals. With the excellent play of foward Lamar Odom and center Pau Gasol the lakers are dominating the competition. With the Lakers currently holding the number one spot in the NBA all the other teams are fighting to catch up. Who knows how long the lakers will be on top we just have to wait and see. Check out www.nba.com/lakers to follow their journey.

The perfect road trip

So the last couple of weeks before the all star break the Lakers went on a 6- game road trip playing in tough games against potential finals opponents in Cleveland and Boston. To my surprise and delight the Lakers not only beat their toughest competition but they also went 6-0 on their road trip. 

Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom, the big three of the Lakers all scored 20 plus points to lead the Lakers past the Boston Celtics 110-109. Kobe scored 26 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 assist while Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol scored 20 and 24 points respectively. Lamar Odom stepped up big against the Cleveland Cavaliers leading the team with 28 points and 17 rebounds. Kobe had a quiet night (for him at least) with 19 points while Pau Gasol added 18 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Lakers past the Cavs 101-91. The undefeated road trip is definitely a sign that the Lakers are a force for be reckoned with.

Road to the finals- the race is on

With so many different teams dominating the NBA right now its hard to make any predictions but if i had to I would put my money on the L.A. Lakers. Even though they fell short in last years finals they've all learned and grown from that experience and they're ready to show the world that its their year. With teams like the Boston Celtics, The Cleveland Cavaliers, The Orlando Magic, and the San Antonio Spurs all playing excellent basketball this year its definitely going to be a big challenge for Kobe and the Lakers. Stay tuned until June and see what happens. (fingers crossed)