Author: Mike Trudell

On Wednesday evening at 7:30 p.m., the Lakers will play the Clippers at STAPLES Center … while wearing purple jerseys.

It’s a road game, after all, one that could potentially still mean something if the Orlando Magic improbably lose at home to Philadelphia. In such case, a Lakers’ win would draw L.A. even with Orlando in the race for the second overall seed in the league, the tiebreaker going to L.A. in case a 2009 Finals rematch occurred since the Lakers have a better record against the opposing conference.

But if Orlando manages to win, the Lakers can only improve from 57 wins on the season to 58.

On the Injury Front
– Kobe Bryant will not play, and neither will Andrew Bynum, though the Lakers did get some positive news in that Bynum took the practice court to shoot on Wednesday morning for the first time since straining his left Achilles.
– Jordan Farmar strained his left hamstring in L.A.’s Tuesday evening win over Sacramento, but will dress and could possibly play against the Clippers.
– Luke Walton played a season-high 24 minutes on his sore back, which he said felt “great.” Obviously, he hopes to stay pain free but isn’t making any assumptions with such a tricky part of the body.

Gasol Going Off
Speaking of “great,” that’s an easy way to describes Pau Gasol’s play of late. The Spaniard produced 28 points on 12-of-15 shooting with eight boards, three assists and a block against Sacramento to complete a five-game stretch featuring the following averages: 27.6 points, 11.0 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 2.8 blocks while shooting 65 percent from the field.

Clippers Scouting Report
Among the keys against the Clippers:

– Limit Chris Kaman’s touches on the block. He can score with either hand and is very active on the glass. He averages 18.5 points and 9.3 boards to lead he Clips in both categories.
– Recognize what newcomers Steve Blake and Travis Outlaw can do, as L.A. hasn’t seen either in the Clippers’ lineup this season.
– Contain Craig Smith in the paint. “The Rhino” averages eight points off the Clippers’ bench, and made 6-of-7 shots for 12 points in the Clippers’ Jan. 6 win against L.A. He then went for 17 in the Clippers’ Jan. 15 loss to the Lakers.
– Control Baron Davis, who had a monster game with 25 points and 10 assists in that Jan. 6 Clips win.

Limited Minutes?
Phil Jackson said that he would like to limit the minutes of Derek Fisher and keep the rest of his regular starters below their averages as well, though Gasol did play 32 minutes and Lamar Odom nearly 35 against the Kings (Ron Artest’s were down to 25 Fisher’s to 18).

Lakers – Kings Gameday Page
In their final home contest of the 2009-10 regular season, the Lakers (57-24) won game No. 34 at STAPLES Center, 106-100, against the visiting Sacramento Kings on Tuesday evening.

Though the Purple and Gold had the Western Conference locked up and a slim chance of matching Orlando for the league’s second-best record*, and with Kobe Bryant and Andrew Bynum out with respective injuries, L.A. still found something to play for: the chance to get some guys going off the bench.
*Orlando would have to lose at home to Philadelphia with L.A. beating the Clippers.

As it turned out, the bench managed one of its better performances of the season in scoring 41 points to complement Pau Gasol’s game-high 28 points and eight rebounds, the Lakers holding off a late charge from the Kings in Sacramento’s final game of the season.

“Got that game competitive after getting a little 13 point lead at the end of the third quarter,” summarized Phil Jackson. “Had to dig in a little bit at the end of the game to sustain that victory. Good game by Pau Gasol and Shannon (Brown*). They led us in the scoring tonight and we had some help off the bench.”

It wasn’t all good news off the bench, however, since Jordan Farmar strained his hamstring early in the second quarter. Farmar, however, will be active and could potentially play against the Clippers on Wednesday evening after being re-evaluated in the morning.

“He’ll dress tomorrow,” said Jackson of his quick-healing backup point guard. “He’s played 81 games this year. I want him to dress and be on the active roster for tomorrow’s game.”

The rest of the regular bench players all played a role in L.A.’s win, led by Sasha Vujacic’s season-high 13 points and six rebounds*, Luke Walton’s nine points with three assists in a season-high 24 minutes, and DJ Mbenga’s seven points with five boards (and his newly-gold dyed hair, matching that of Ron Artest). Regular sub Brown, starting in Bryant’s absence, added 24 points with three rebounds and three assists.
*Four of Vujacic’s season-high six rebounds came on the offensive end, including two tip ins, prompting this Phil Jackson postgame quip: “He’s an offensive rebounding Machine. That’s what he is now.”

Jackson suggested that Vujacic’s play has “got to make him feel much better about his game, and said that Walton “does things that create a little offensive rhythm for us and offensive opportunities.” While the team will continue to monitor how Walton’s back feels heading into the playoffs, he was happy at least with where things were on Tuesday.

“(My back) felt great,” he said. “It was a lot of fun out there, playing again and being out there and not having pain. To be out there and move and stuff was a lot of fun.”

Altogether, L.A.’s pine crew put up 24 points in the first half to help the Lakers take a 60-54 lead into the break, the home team shooting 52.3 percent thanks in part to Gasol’s 5-of-7. Sacramento wasn’t far behind, however, making 50 percent of their shots led by Jason Thompson’s 6-of-10 (15 points) and Francisco Garcia’s 5-for-8 (11 points).

It was Vujacic who keyed the bench effort in the second half, not from the field but with those season-high six boards. Brown added 12 of his points, including a dagger jumper that put L.A. up 106-100 with 28 seconds remaining, getting that look thanks to good ball movement that had been a factor all night.

“We got the ball moving today and then everybody got good looks,” explained Brown.

The bench effort wouldn’t have mattered without the outstanding play of Gasol, who nailed 12-of-15 shots from the field to score his 28, marking the fifth straight game that he’d managed at least 23 points. In fact, Gasol’s averaged
27.6 points in those last five on 65 percent shooting, not to mention nearly 12 rebounds, five assists and three blocks.

“He’s had real good opportunities, he’s had some real exceptional games for us,” said Jackson. “Without Kobe on the floor he’s had more of a load to carry, so all those things have contributed to it. He’s going in at the right level which I want to see him play at the offensive end.”

In short, with Kobe Bryant getting some rest for the playoffs, the Lakers’ other superstar has been playing his best basketball.

The bench, meanwhile, will look to back up its collective performance with another good one in the Wednesday finale back at STAPLES Center, albeit on the road, but until then, your numbers:

POSTGAME NUMBERS
65 Pau Gasol’s shooting percentage in his last five games, during which he’s averaged 27.6 points, nearly 12 rebounds, five assists and three blocks. He went for 28 points, eight boards, three assists and a block against the Kings.

49.4 L.A.’s solid shooting percentage for the evening, though Sacramento hung around thanks to converting 47.8 percent of its own shots.

41 Bench points for the Lakers, paced by Sasha Vujacic’s 13, nine from Luke Walton – who played a season-high 24 minutes, and seven from DJ Mbenga.

24 Points for Shannon Brown, just three off his season and career high, on 10-of-19 shooting in place of Kobe Bryant, who rested the avulsion fracture on his right index finger.

13 Season-high point total for Sasha Vujacic, who made 5-of-9 shots, including a buzzer-beating three in the first quarter. He also managed a season-high six rebounds, four of which came on the offensive end, all in the second half.

*****UPDATE: Farmar will be re-evaluated on Wednesday morning, but according to Lakers PR, he may in fact play in L.A.’s game against the Clippers. It was originally reported (see below) that he would not play.

Jordan Farmar strained his left hamstring in the second quarter of L.A.’s Tuesday evening game against Sacramento, and would not return to action.

The Lakers announced that Farmar would also not play in the team’s regular season finale on Wednesday evening against the Clippers.

He is listed as day-to-day and will be re-evaluated heading into the playoffs, which the Lakers will open against Oklahoma City.

The performance of Pau Gasol in the last week or so has been nothing short of fantastic, worthy of a quick look:

April 4 vs. San Antonio: 13-of-20 FG’s, 32 pts, 7 reb, 6 ast, 3 blk
April 8 @ Denver: 8-of-17 FG’s, 26 pts, 13 reb, 5 ast, 3 blk
April 9 @ Minnesota: 11-of-17 FG’s, 29 pts, 15 reb, 4 ast, 4 blk
April 11 vs. Portland: 9-of-13 FG’s, 23 pts, 12 reb, 4 ast, 3 blk

That averages out to 27.5 points, 11.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists & 3.3 blocks on 61.2 percent shooting.

Not bad.

On the season, Gasol’s averaging 18.2 points, 11.3 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 0.57 steals and 1.76 blocks in 37.2 minutes per game.

Assistant coach Frank Hamblen helped us break down the Sacramento Kings by detailing how to contend with Rookie of the Year candidate Tyreke Evans on the perimeter and Carl Landry on the block, as well as Beno Udrih in screen-roll situations.

Hamblen also detailed where L.A.’s focus needs to center in their final home regular season contest in which neither Kobe Bryant (finger) nor Andrew Bynum (Achilles) will play.

Tip off is at 7:30 p.m.

The Lakers found out a few days early whom they’ll play in the first round of the playoffs: the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Heading into Monday night’s NBA action, San Antonio, Portland and Oklahoma City were positioned in a three-way tie with identical 49-31 records and two games to play, the loser of which would draw L.A.

As it turned out, San Antonio easily beat Minnesota 133-111, while Portland went on a late run at home to defeat Oklahoma City 103-95 and lock the Thunder into the No. 8 seed.

OKC can still finish with the same record as San Antonio and Portland if both of those teams lose and the Thunder win their final contest, but both Portland and San Antonio hold the season tiebreaker against Oklahoma City (both went 3-1 vs. Durant and Co.).

While the Lakers still have two games to play – Tuesday vs. Sacramento and Wednesday at the L.A. Clippers – the only thing that can still change in the playoff picture is a slim chance at the overall No. 2 seed currently owned by the Orlando Magic. Basically, if Orlando loses its final game – at home against Philadelphia (27-54) – and L.A. wins out, they’ll reclaim the second slot and have home court if both teams make the Finals.

In the meantime, we’ll start to take a look ahead to the playoff series against Oklahoma City, a team against which L.A. went 3-1 in the regular season.

Stay tuned.

Q: Which 49-31 team will be L.A.’s first round opponent:
A) Oklahoma City
B) Portland
C) San Antonio

Well … we don’t know yet. But we could after Monday night’s games. Here are the respective remaining schedules of OKC, POR and S.A., which take place on Monday and Wednesday:

Thunder: at Portland, Memphis
Blazers: Oklahoma City, Golden State
Spurs: Minnesota, at Dallas

As if turns out, if Portland can beat Oklahoma City at home tonight without Brandon Roy and the Spurs take care of Minnesota at home, L.A. would play the Thunder in Round 1.

That’s the most simple answer.

Such would be the case in part due to tiebreakers, since San Antonio already holds that advantage over the Thunder, and Portland would as well with a victory. In other words, if that Monday scenario holds up, the Blazers and Spurs could both lose their final game even if OKC beat Memphis and steer clear of the Lakers.

However, if the Thunder happen to beat Portland, throw all that out of the window, because the Lakers won’t know whom they’ll play until the last day of the regular season on Wednesday.

Any of the three teams that wins its final two games will of course be safe from No. 8, but not all three could lose their final two since Portland and OKC go head-to-head. Here’s a look at some other options:

How the Thunder would be No. 8
– Lose at Portland with San Antonio winning one of two games.

How the Blazers would be No. 8
– Lose vs. OKC and win against Golden State if San Antonio wins both of its games.

How the Spurs would be No. 8
– Beat Minnesota but lose at Dallas (who could be fighting for the No. 2 seed) with OKC beating Portland and Memphis (Portland has the tiebreaker over San Antonio so they’d only need to win one of two games should San Antonio drop one of two games).

In other words: who knows. We’ll just have to wait until the OKC – MEM, POR – G.S. and S.A. – DAL games shake out, then take a look at the tiebreak rules below.

NBA.COM TIEBREAK RULES
If all three teams split their two remaining games to finish at 50-32, the below rules would come into play:

a. Two Teams Tied b. More Than Two Teams Tied
(1) Better winning percentage in games against each other. (1) Better winning percentage in all games among the tied teams.
(2) Better winning percentage against teams in own division (only if tied teams are in same division). (2) Better winning percentage against teams in own division (only if all tied teams are in the same division).
(3) Better winning percentage against teams in own conference. (3) Better winning percentage against teams in own conference.
(4) Better winning percentage against teams eligible for playoffs in own conference (including teams that finished the regular season tied for a playoff position). (4) Better winning percentage against teams eligible for playoffs in own conference (including teams that finished the regular season tied for a playoff position).
(5) Better winning percentage against teams eligible for playoffs in opposite conference (including teams that finished the regular season tied for a playoff position). (5) Better net result of total points scored less total points allowed against all opponents (”point differential”).
(6) Better net result of total points scored less total points allowed against all opponents (”point differential”).

The last update we had on Andrew Bynum came from Denver on Thursday, when he suggested that he most likely would not play in L.A.’s final two regular season games, but would almost certainly play in the Lakers’ first playoff game.

Bynum confirmed as much after Monday’s practice, during which he ran on one of the team’s machines with 30 pounds of weight on his back.

“It worked fine,” he said. “There was no pain. Tomorrow, (I’ll) run a little bit further, put a little more weight on.”

Bynum’s primary concern isn’t for his left Achilles tendon, but on his game shape and conditioning, which he recognizes will take a bit of time to return. He’s already missed 11 games due to the injury.

The 22-year-old center hopes to resume basketball activities on Wednesday, the day of L.A.’s final regular season game, which would give him several days of practice before the team’s first playoff game.

Lakers guard Kobe Bryant will not play in L.A.’s final two games of the regular season due to the avulsion fracture on his right index finger.

L.A. plays the Kings on Tuesday and Clippers on Wednesday, which will be the eighth and ninth games missed this season by No. 24.

After Monday afternoon’s practice, Lamar Odom was asked if he thought Kobe’s absence would affect his rhythm in the playoffs.

“We know how good Kobe is,” Odom answered. “He won’t have a problem. I don’t care if he missed 50 games.”

Click here for the Lakers – Blazers Gameday Page

The Lakers may have locked up home court advantage throughout the Western Conference Playoffs with Friday evening’s win at Minnesota, but that didn’t take the intrigue out of Sunday afternoon’s contest against potential first-round playoff opponent Portland.

In fact, it’s hard to draw up a more dramatic, or more strange, final minute of regulation in which the Blazers appeared to have the game locked up … then lost … and finally won again, 91-88.

With Portland up five points and 55 seconds remaining on the clock, Kobe Bryant nailed a deep 3-pointer, then capitalized on Sasha Vujacic’s drawn charge to convert a driving and-1 layup around LaMarcus Aldridge to put L.A. up one with 31 seconds to play. However, Portland got a put back layup from Marcus Camby on Aldridge’s miss to retake a lead that Bryant could have erased after drawing a foul with 6.9 seconds to play to head to the free throw line. Instead, he improbably missed both attempts.

Just as strange, Derek Fisher missed the front end of his two freebies that resulted from Pau Gasol’s rebound and Andre Miller’s foul, though his second attempt tied the game at 88 with 4.7 seconds on the clock.

“Not two back-to-back,” was Phil Jackson’s reaction to whether he’d ever seen L.A.’s best two foul shooters miss down the stretch.

As it turned out, the misses may not have mattered, as Fisher fouled Martell Webster behind the three-point arc with 3.1 seconds to play, and Webster hit all three to put Portland up 91-88. Still with us? Needing a triple to tie, it was Gasol, not Fisher or Bryant, for whom Phil Jackson drew up the final play, but the Spaniard missed a good look wide right.

“Crazy,” was Blazers’ coach Nate McMillan’s feeling on the ending. “That was just crazy. We fouled Kobe, they foul us, Kobe missed two free throws, Fisher missed a free throw. I mean, just a crazy ending. I’m glad we were on the winning side of that though.”

With the victory, Portland took a big step towards avoiding the Lakers in the first round by drawing even with San Antonio in the standings (49-31) – against whom they own the tiebreaker – with two games to play, both of which come at home.

The Blazers managed the win despite losing Brandon Roy to a sore knee in the first half by shooting 45 percent and outrebounding the Lakers 46-41. Bryant struggled from the field in his first game after taking two off to rest his various injuries, making 8-of-23 shots for 20 points. Double-doubles from Gasol (23 and 12) and Lamar Odom (16 and 15) weren’t enough to counter L.A.’s lack of bench production (eight points on 3-of-15 shooting).

“I told the team that we looked to give this game away and we certainly did,” said Jackson.

In the first quarter, the Lakers stormed out of the gates on an 11-2 run, swarming Portland on defense to create three turnovers, but the Blazers steadily got back into the game, coming to within three points at quarter’s close at 23-20. Bryant made 3-of-5 shots, all in the paint, before two misses at the end of the quarter, while Ron Artest notched all six of L.A.’s assists in the period.

It was a seesaw second quarter as the Blazers first managed to knot the score at 27 before L.A. cracked down defensively while building an 8-point lead at 46-38 with just under two minutes to play. Then Portland pushed back with a 7-0 run to close the half, cutting L.A.’s lead to one heading into the third.

The Blazers kept up their solid run of play to start the third, riding LaMarcus Aldridge in Roy’s absence to build a 6-point lead before the Lakers rallied back to reclaim the lead heading into the fourth, 71-69.

Things tilted quickly back the other way for Portland, which took advantage of L.A. starting 1-for-12 from the field in the fourth to eventually build a 7-point lead with 3:34 to play when Webster hit all three free throws after Odom bumped him on an attempt behind the line, the first of two fouls on Webster behind the line about which Phil Jackson wasn’t happy.

Then came the “crazy” final stretch, the importance of which Bryant downplayed after the game, his concern lying more with getting his body ready for the playoffs.

“It’s a little rusty, a little stiff from not playing, not being active,” he said of his right knee. “I’ll be fine. It’s nice to get out there and play a little bit, loosen up the joints.

“The rest did me good. You can’t rest too much because then you get rusty and your joints get stiff.”

The Lakers, who fell behind Orlando in the race for the NBA’s second overall seed, have two games left before the first round of the playoffs likely starts a week from Sunday.

Until then, your numbers:

POSTGAME NUMBERS
1 Huge dunk through traffic produced by Sasha Vujacic, his first since last season in Sacramento.

3 Improbable missed free throws from Kobe Bryant (2) and Derek Fisher (1) in the game’s final minute.

6 Turnovers for the Lakers, a season low, all of which came on offensive fouls; Phil Jackson said he was pleased with that aspect of the game.

8 Bench points for the Lakers on 3-of-15 shooting.

27 Combined rebounds for Lamar Odom (15) and Pau Gasol (12), though L.A. lost the battle of the boards 46-41 to the Blazers.

Click here for the Lakers – Blazers Gameday Preview Page

The Lakers have locked up the No. 1 seed in the West, but can still play a crucial role in determining whom they’ll face in the first round of the playoffs in Sunday’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers.

A week ago, the Blazers looked to have an edge on both the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs to stay out of No. 8, but a Friday evening home loss to Dallas in particular has put Portland in danger of facing the Lakers in the second season.

Below are the current standings, with team records and final three opponents:

6) Oklahoma City (49-30); @GS, @ POR, MEM
7) San Antonio (49-31); MIN, @DAL
8) Portland (48-31); @LAL, OKC, GS

San Antonio owns the tiebreaker over Oklahoma City but Portland has it over the Spurs, while the Portland – O.K.C. breaker won’t be determined until the two teams face off on Monday, April 12. As such, if the Thunder manage to win on the road, they’ll possess the tiebreak due to division win percentages, but if Portland wins, they would claim the honors due to a 3-1 season edge.

The Lakers, of course, can throw a big wrench into Portland’s plan to move up to the seven or six spot by beating the Blazers on Sunday, which would put them a game behind San Antonio in the loss column.

Over a month ago, on March 2 against Indiana, Shannon Brown sprained the thumb on his right shooting hand while blocking a shot from Dahntay Jones of the Pacers.

Since then, he’s been playing through the injury, averaging 19.4 minutes per game in March and 25.8 in four April games. The thumb has affected his shooting to the tune of 38.5 percent shooting from the field in March and 28.9 percent in April, but Lakers head coach Phil Jackson still values his contribution.

“If he plays in the game he’s going to give me a good effort, I know that,” said Phil Jackson. “That’s the kind of kid he is. His athleticism and his speed, the things that he can do are things that almost no one else on our team can do but Kobe right now. That reactive quality that he is is very important to us.”

Brown continues to be listed with a “sprained right thumb” on L.A.’s injury report, but is not expected to miss any time.

Lakers – Wolves Gameday Page
We took a look at the Lakers – Wolves contest in Minneapolis as the Lakers looked to rebound from a tough loss in Denver the night before, with knowledge that a win would clinch home court advantage throughout the Western Conference Playoffs.

Inactives
Lakers: Andrew Bynum (Achilles)
Wolves: Al Jefferson

Starters
Lakers: Fisher, Brown*, Artest, Odom and Gasol
Wolves: Jonny Flynn, Corey Brewer, Ryan Gomes, Kevin Love, Darko Milicic
*Though Vujacic was announced in the starting lineup with Kobe Bryant opting to miss his second-straight game, Shannon Brown got the start.

Injury Update
Both teams come in missing their best players, with Kobe Bryant opting to rest for the second-straight night and Minnesota’s Al Jefferson missing the contest due to personal reasons. The Lakers also go without Andrew Bynum for the 10th straight game. For a full preview podcast of the contest, CLICK HERE.

First Quarter
5:59 Much was made about how late … er, early … the Lakers arrived in Minneapolis (4 a.m. plane touch down), and such circumstances often have a direct impact upon that night’s game (whether they should or not). Sure enough, L.A. settled for jumpers for the first several minutes as the Wolves jumped to an 8-2 lead, but the Lakers quickly responded by getting better shots on offense and eventually knotting the score at 13 when Ron Artest nailed his first 3-pointer in three attempts.

3:22 Artest’s jumper made it 21-15, capping a 19-7 run, but the Lakers failed to score for the rest of the quarter. Fortunately for them, Minnesota couldn’t find the rim either, and L.A. took a 21-17 edge into the second quarter despite shooting just 36.4 percent from the field.

Second Quarter
5:51 Sasha Vujacic nailed his third straight shot of the quarter to get to seven points, helping a nice stretch from L.A.’s full complement of bench players (Farmar, Vujacic, Walton, Powell and Mbenga) that opened an 11-point lead.

2:57 Jackson didn’t put Gasol, Artest or Fisher in until the 5:51 mark of the second, a longer-than-usual rest (more usual for a back-to-back, of course), but the Spaniard promptly made an imprint by using his length in the lane to first nail a running hook, then grab his fourth offensive board and put it back to reach 12 points with seven boards, putting L.A. up 44-32.

0:50.1 Adam Morrison’s first appearance since garbage time in Atlanta rendered a baseline jumper, and Gasol added a free throw to get to a game-high 15 points while putting the Lakers up 52-34 at the half.

Third Quarter
8:55 Phil Jackson didn’t look too pleased to see Minnesota go on a 9-0 run to begin the second half, but instead of calling a time out, allowed L.A. to figure it out … and that they did. Gasol scored on back-to-back possessions, then Odom laid in to put the lead back at 15.

3:09 The Wolves, however, used the middle portion of the quarter to swing right back, climbing to within seven points when Ryan Gomes hit two free throws. L.A. had no trouble scoring, but seemed to let up a bit defensively as Minnesota made 10 field goals in eight minutes after totaling just 15 in the first half.

0:24.5 An and-1 layup from the Human Victory Cigar (that’d be Darko Milicic, the No. 2 pick after LeBron and before Carmelo, Bosh and Wade) got the Wolves within nine at quarter’s close, cutting L.A.’s halftime advantage in half.

Fourth Quarter
11:00 Jordan Farmar’s 3-pointer pushed the lead quickly back to 10 after the Wolves continued to nibble, again getting it to within seven. The bucket gave L.A.’s bench 28 points with 11 minutes to play, and was Farmar’s third in four attempts. In fact, on the season, Farmar was at that point shooting 38.1 percent to lead the team (he passed Artest in March).

7:45 Congo Cash (you may know him as DJ Mbenga) was a relative scoring machine, nailing to early-fourth buckets to get to 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting. That was, in fact, good enough for Mbenga’s career high. Congo Cash.

2:41 L.A.’s bench failed to match its production from the first half early in the fourth, allowing Minnesota to cut the lead to just four repeatedly, but Gasol and Odom stepped up in a big way in the game’s final two minutes. First Gasol swatted a Wolves’ attempt at the rim, then nailed a hook on offense. On the next possession, Odom boarded Gasol’s miss before eventually dropping a dagger 3-pointer to put L.A. up 95-86 with a minute to play. Odom added the game’s final bucket on a pretty alley-oop layup from Farmar to seal the Western Conference for the Lakers.

Up next is a Sunday afternoon tilt against Portland back in Los Angeles, but until then, your numbers:

POSTGAME NUMBERS
3 Straight years the Lakers have won the Western Conference.

11 Career-high points scored by DJ Mbenga. Congo Cash.

12 Turnovers for the Lakers, another solid performance in terms of ball control.

29 Points for Pau Gasol on 11-of-17 shooting, not to mention 15 rebounds and four assists in an impressive showing from the Spaniard.

33 Bench points for L.A., led by 13 from Jordan Farmar, who hit 3-of-6 3-pointers.

Lakers – Wolves Gameday Page

Lakers guard Kobe Bryant missed his second straight game on Friday night in Minnesota, opting to rest his various injuries (sore knee, ankle and finger) as L.A. took on the Timberwolves.

Phil Jackson neglected to speculate as to Bryant’s status for Sunday’s game against Portland, suggesting that he’d address the question over the weekend.

To preview L.A.’s Friday evening contest with the Minnesota Timberwolves, we sat down for a chat with Timberwolves.com’s Jonah Ballow to discuss Al Jefferson’s absence, Kevin Love’s role as a fill in, how Jonny Flynn runs head coach Kurt Rambis’s offense and more.

Click below to listen.Lakers-Timberwolves Jonah Ballow Podcast

For the NBA’s bench players, playing time is like oxygen.

That naturally holds true for any team’s reserves, but for the Lakers’ bench in particular – sitting behind the league’s most talented starting lineup – PT is like the water’s surface to a diver scrambling upwards with an empty tank.

It’s a bit different for each player: Jordan Farmar and Shannon Brown always want more minutes, but at least they can expect relatively consistent burn in their defined roles; Luke Walton’s eager to get into the rotation after battling back issues all season; Josh Powell and DJ Mbenga work hard in practice daily to stay ready for spot duty behind L.A.’s three star bigs; Adam Morrison covets the chance to show he can still play.

And boy, does Sasha Vujacic want to be on the floor.

After falling almost completely out of Phil Jackson’s rotation this season after a diminished role in post-Machine 2008-09, Vujacic certainly wasn’t expecting to start for just the 12th time in his career and first time since 2006-07 on Friday night in Denver.

But when Kobe Bryant decided not to play in order to rest his body (knee, ankle, finger, etc.), Jackson called on the Slovenian, and played him for 25 minutes and 39 seconds, by far the most run Vujacic had received all season and only the third time he’d played at least 20 minutes.

While the 6-7 guard didn’t have the kind of game he’d hoped for from a shooting standpoint – he made only 3-of-12 attempts from the field (2-of-7 from three) – just being on the floor for an extended run was for Vujacic like opening a packet of Lucky Charms featuring only marshmallows.

“Today was an important game for me to get a feel for things,” said Vujacic, who added three boards and an assist. “I was a little too passive (to start), but it was great to be out there for a long time.”

Understandably, getting into an individual rhythm heading into the playoffs isn’t easy for someone who’d played a total of 96 minutes since the All-Star break (that’s less than three games for Bryant), even if finding a way to contribute regardless of how limited the role is incumbent upon every pro player.

“I just want to be able to help the team,” said Sasha. “Tonight I got a feel for the game. The (missed) shots I’m not worried about, it’s just getting in the flow. I’m mad we lost, but it’s a great opportunity for guys to get it going.”

Since Vujacic hadn’t been playing much of late anyway, his 26 minutes in Bryant’s place didn’t necessarily increase the burn for the rest of the bench in his stead. Still, Brown scored 12 points with a block in his nearly 27 minutes, Farmar scored seven points with three boards, Powell managed four points with five boards in 21 minutes and Mbenga a basket and four rebounds in only 4:29. In sum, 25 points and 13 boards from the bench wasn’t bad.

It was Brown, not Vujacic, who started the second half. The unit featuring the high-flier and the rest of the starters played so well that Jackson didn’t make a substitution in the quarter, as L.A. went on a 27-11 run after Denver scored the first five points to turn a 10-point halftime deficit into a 1-point lead into the fourth. Vujacic then returned with Farmar and Powell, and promptly sank two 3-pointers in a 2-minute span, the second after he’d grabbed an offensive rebound and then spotted up in the corner before catching Powell’s nice skip pass.

Vujacic is hoping, and planning, to bring some of that to the Lakers in Minnesota on Friday night, a game in which Bryant is not expected to play.

“Of course I’d love to play more minutes again,” Vujacic said. “I’ve been eager for a long time. I just want to carry on. Today wasn’t a great shooting night, but I’m not worried about my shots. Tomorrow I want to do different things, mix it up, but keep going and keep it consistent up to the playoffs.”

Getting Kobe well-rested for those playoffs exists in its own vacuum, surely, but if Vujacic can use even a brief absence from No. 24 to find a semblance of rhythm, the Lakers are the beneficiary.

Sure enough, just a bit of oxygen can go a long way for a bench player in the NBA.

Lakers – Nuggets Gameday Page
We took a look at the Lakers – Nuggets contest in Denver while it was happening, entering a thought or three each quarter as the Lakers looked to even the season series with the Nuggets and lock up home court advantage throughout the Western Conference Playoffs.

Inactives
Lakers: Andrew Bynum (Achilles)
Nuggets: Kenyon Martin

Starters
Lakers: Fisher, Vujacic*, Artest, Odom and Gasol
Nuggets: Chauncey Billups, Arron Afflalo, Carmelo Anthony, Nene, Johan Petro
*We learned just before tip off that Kobe Bryant would be a late scratch, with Sasha Vujacic getting the start. Kobe was sitting out due in part to “right knee swelling,” as would officially be listed.

Lakers – Nuggets Preview
The Lakers come into the Thursday evening contest with three days of rest, while Denver had to play in Oklahoma City the night before, a game featuring a big time fourth quarter comeback that vaulted the Nuggets back into second place in the West. We
_blank”>jotted down some of the more interesting notes heading into the game, and also previewed the game via podcast with the Denver Post’s Benjamin Hochman.

First Quarter
12:00 “Starting at guard from Slovenia, number 18, Sasha Vujacic.” The announcement from Denver’s PA guy was certainly shocking to the assembled crowd at Pepsi Center, almost immediately removing any bragging rights from the contest.

4:40 L.A. performed admirably on defense in particular through the game’s first seven minutes, holding the Nuggets to 3-of-10 shooting before Carmelo Anthony nailed a wing 3-pointer to put Denver up 12-10. Last time these teams met, Ron Artest had a fantastic defensive game against ‘Melo, holding him to 7-of-19 shooting with eight turnovers.

1:56 I’ve mentioned a few times in the last two games how Artest struggled considerably from 3-point distance in March, shooting only 27 percent. However, he nailed his first attempt from the wing, and moments later Gasol tipped in a miss and Shannon Brown made two free throws to bring L.A. within two at 22-20 at quarter’s end.

Second Quarter
9:37 Two more free throws from Brown followed Artest’s jumper (10 points) to give L.A. a 27-23 lead, capping a 15-3 for the visitors. The Nuggs, however, scored four points in four seconds when J.R. Smith laid in from the lane and Ty Lawson stole the inbounds pass and laid in himself. Nonetheless, a solid start from the Kobe- and Bynum-less Lakers.

5:59 The first solid momentum swing in Denver’s favor featured J.R. Smith, among the NBA’s best offensive weapons in general (not just off the bench), who went off for five straight points. First he flew into the lane for a finger roll, then he sank a corner three to put Denver up 38-33. Smith went on to nail three more triples in the next three minutes to get to 18 points in the half, pushing Denver’s lead to 52-41. The last three actually pushed Smith past Michael Adams for the franchise record for career 3-pointers made (631).

Third Quarter
5:20 After Denver scored the quarter’s first five points, it was all Purple and Gold, as Brown, Fisher, Gasol and Odom all scored before Artest’s third 3-pointer of the ball game. That pushed Artest’s team-high total to 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting. The effects of Denver playing the night before seemed to be increasingly showing.

3:16 L.A.’s terrific quarter continued in emphatic fashion, with Brown’s patented one-handed hammer dunk from the wing capping a 20-5 run that tied the game at 67. Moments later, Nene’s two missed free throws and two ensuing makes from Gasol gave L.A. its first lead since early in the second quarter.

0:35.6 Anthony, who’d missed his first four shots of the quarter, finally hit a deep jumper, but the Lakers had still outscored Denver 27-11 after the 5-0 start for the Nuggs to turn a 10-point halftime deficit into a 74-73 lead. Artest had nearly matched Anthony’s 22 points with 20 of his own on five fewer shots, thanks in part to 3-of-3 shooting from three.

Fourth Quarter
9:19 The unit of Fisher, Brown, Artest, Odom and Gasol was so good in the third that Jackson didn’t even use his bench. But in the fourth, Jordan Farmar and Sasha Vujacic both nailed perimeter J’s, Vujacic’s a triple to answer J.R. Smith’s fifth, to push L.A.’s lead to a game-high five at 81-76.

6:24 We’ve been negligent to not mention Gasol’s name more often, since the Spaniard continued an excellent performance with seven quick points to reach 26 on the night, not to mention 13 rebounds and five assists and two blocks already. His 11-foot jumper made it 89-82 L.A., though Billups answered with his second three of the game to cut the margin to four heading into the final six minutes. Question was, how much would L.A. miss Kobe in crunch time?

2:41 With Artest standing helplessly at halfcourt hoping to check back into the game, Anthony reeled off seven straight points for the Nuggets (L.A. getting just a three from Farmar), including two drives to the rim and an open three in transition that tied the game at 92. Fisher’s two free throws were countered with a Smith floater from the baseline, before the Lakers turned the ball over due to a shot clock violation (having Kobe certainly could have helped there).

0:32.4 Here’s some play-by-play for ya as Denver simply made more plays down the stretch: two Fisher free throws countered ‘Melo’s free throws after Nene’s 1-of-2, putting L.A. down one with the Nuggets retaining possession. Brown then made a great defensive play to swat Smith’s baseline jumper, but almost immediately turned the ball over trying to outlet the ball to Fisher too quickly with 14 seconds left. As a result, L.A. had to foul Smith, who helped out by missing the first of two free throws, but Anthony blocked Fisher’s potential game-winning three to preserve a 98-96 win for the Nuggets.

That one stings a bit for the visitors, who rallied without Bryant and Bynum from 15 points down to take a 6-point lead before giving way to Denver down the stretch. The loss drops L.A. into a tie with Orlando for the league’s second-best record, though the Lakers do hold the tiebreak with the Magic in a potential Finals rematch since they have a better record against the other conference. The Lakers are scheduled to land in Minneapolis around 3:30 a.m. local time heading into Friday night’s back-to-back. Until then, your numbers:

POSTGAME NUMBERS
3 Triples nailed by Ron Artest in as many attempts, a pleasant sign for the Lakers since Artest had been struggling from distance (27 percent in March). Artest finished a solid offensive night with 22 points on 7-of-11 shooting, plus six boards, three assists and two steals.

9 Turnovers for L.A., helping the Lakers hang tough in the game, though a shot clock violation with 1:32 to play and the game tied at 94 was a killer.

9 Free throws missed by Denver, including two big late ones from J.R. Smith and Nene, respectively, that nearly came back to bite the Nuggets.

13 Rebounds for both Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom, helping L.A. control the glass 52-39. In fact, 17 offensive rebounds helped lead to 26 second-chance points for the Lakers.

16 Assists for the Lakers, to 23 for Denver.

Just before Thursday evening’s tip off in Denver, we learned that Lakers guard Kobe Bryant would not play against the Nuggets.

He will officially be listed as out with “right knee swelling,” according to the Lakers’ PR staff.

Phil Jackson had suggested before the game that certain players might be rested at various points of the team’s final five games, but did not reveal that he’d keep Bryant on the shelf. Jackson did, however, suggest that he’d like to get Bryant some additional rest for his legs heading into the playoffs.

The Lakers essentially have the Western Conference locked up with a 4.5-game lead over both Denver and Dallas (basically need one win or one loss from DEN/DAL) and hold a 0.5-game lead over Orlando for the No. 2 overall seed behind Orlando.

Starting in Bryant’s place was Sasha Vujacic.

“Injury Update: Andrew Bynum” is a title you’ll likely see a few more times before the regular season is over.

The latest version, from Denver, found Bynum saying that he might not risk returning to action before the playoffs begin on his still tender left Achilles, saying that playing too early could bring “another possibility to go back a couple steps.”

Bynum did not, however, rule out returning for the final two regular season contests on April 13 and 14 against Sacramento and the L.A. Clippers.

“I told both Andrew and Kobe that it’s more important that they go into the playoffs with a good set of legs, and we’re really positive about that,” said Phil Jackson. “Andrew coming back in the last two games was just not feasible, it’s better to rest him until the playoffs start or even into the playoffs before he plays.”

While Bynum’s initial comments were in line with Jackson’s statement, the 22-year-old center went on to say that he definitely planned on playing in L.A.’s first playoff game, no matter what.

“I’m going to play in the first playoff game,” he said. “Have to.”

Bynum Learning Spanish
Even while being interviewed about his potential return to action, Bynum had his laptop resting on his knees and special headphones around his neck. They weren’t there, however, to listen to music or watch movies, but instead to learn Spanish. Bynum, both smart and curious (it’s rare that you’ll find him without a book), is on a mission to learn Spanish, having purchased Rosetta Stone’s Spanish package.

Bynum said that living in Southern California is an impetus towards learning the language, in addition to his general desire to learn new things.